One Piece: Pure Corruption
by KennyMan666
Summary: Early in the golden era of pirates, long before there was such a thing as a Straw Hat crew, a small group of people meet in West Blue and start traveling together. But their world is not a safe place, and even a cruise around West Blue with new friends might turn into an adventure that none of them could have imagined when they first set sail.
1. Avasine, city on the waves

_Prologue_

The golden era of pirates was still young. Only a handful of years had passed since the execution of the Pirate King, Gold Roger. The chase for the fabled treasure, One Piece, had already claimed the lives of many ambitious crews, and the Grand Line had become a more chaotic sea than it had ever been before. The Marines were mobilizing in unprecedented numbers as more and more people hungry to follow in the footsteps of the Pirate King found themselves consigned to Davy Jones' Locker. One certain pirate by the name of Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard, had made himself a name as one of the strongest before this new era even began - and with Gold Roger gone, he was without any doubts the mightiest pirate on the sea. But the number of powerful pirates was greater than ever, with some even coming close to rivaling the strength of Roger and Whitebeard. To counter this, the World Government themselves turned to enlisting strong pirates to work for them...

Far away from all that, in the still calm ocean of West Blue, a small boat with a single crewmember appeared to have become lost. On the side of the boat, the name _Cassandra_ had been painted, and lying on the deck was a man in his late twenties, with unkempt yellow hair and a stubble on his chin. Wearing only a white collared shirt and a pair of black pants, he appeared to be mightily exhausted from the heat.

"Can't... give up..."

He had set sail five days ago, expecting a three day long trip to reach his destination. He had no more food, and water supplies were dwindling. Seagulls circled over his boat as he stared into the sky and spoke to himself.

"I have to fight... Avasine can't be far..."

He took a compass out of his pocket and looked out over the bow. The course was still the correct one, as far as he could tell. Fighting to stand up, he took a deep breath and raised a spyglass that he had left lying on the deck.

"Wait... can that be?"

In the distance, through the spyglass, a white light glinted. With renewed vigor, the man walked over to the boat's cabin and examined the map he had nailed to the wall next to the door.

"If it is, then..."

Picking up on a fortunate wind, he hurried to have the sail catch it. As he approached what he had seen in the spyglass, it became clear to him that he had reached his goal.

Landing at the location in front of him would become the beginning of a journey far beyond the reaches of anything that this man had ever imagined he would achieve in his life. It would be the beginning of an adventure so amazing, that he would not have believed anyone who had told him a story like it.

But right now, he did not know anything about that. As he steered his ship towards the glistening white structures in front of him, all he knew was that he had to get something to eat.

* * *

 _ **A word from the author**_

 _Welcome to ONE PIECE: PURE CORRUPTION._

 _This is a One Piece fanfic with ambitions. You can read it here, no problem. All chapters will be submitted to here, and you can give me comments here._

 _But I do much more recommend reading it on its own dedicated webpage - corruption dot next-era dot net - with a more comfortable page structure, better formatting and some additional content._

 _That said, please enjoy the first volume of Pure Corruption, called "As the wind rises", and its first chapter - "Avasine, city on the waves"!_

* * *

Mirise Lake was looking out over Avasine from her vantage point, on top of the tallest building in the city. She had done this many times before, and had no particular reason to do it. She merely liked the view from this height. She had lived in this city all her life, and as she had come to Avasine as a baby while it was still a construction site where only a few merchants and carpenters lived, had grown up together with it. She knew where every building in the city was, she noticed immediately if a new one had been built or if one had been torn down.

Avasine was not a real island. It consisted entirely of a network of white bridgelike structures a few feet above the waves, on top of which a city had grown. Originally a small trading post, it had quickly become a busy trade center - as there were no inlets or shallow waters to navigate, it made an ideal stop for larger ships. Thus, it had caught the attention of the Marines, who saw the potential of such a location and had on several occasions attempted to acquire the city for themselves. But as the city itself had no record of serious crimes and had never tried to oppose the World Government, the Marines had no reason to use force. But with the repeated attempts of the Marines to gain control of their city, the public opinion of them among the citizens soon became unfavourable. Since a lot of the city thrived on the business resulting from the large amount of people coming through, no matter their affiliation, many were of the opinion that putting it under marine control would deter many potential visitors. As pirates rarely caused any trouble, the city enjoyed its reputation as a neutral zone - even if any truce, especially with the increasingly unstable state of the world, was an uneasy one.

She was a young woman, having turned 21 but had always looked a few years younger than her actual age. Tanned skin, cerulean eyes, light golden-blond hair fading to a light cyan near the lower fringes. Dressed in an airy blue top and a knee-length, flowing skirt, she always wore a smile on her face. On her feet, she wore nothing.

Looking out over the northern docks, Mirise spotted a small ship clumsily making its way towards Avasine. While ships approaching was nothing special, something about this particular one caught her eye and she observed it for a few moments before setting off again. She ran a few steps forwards and took a leap towards the roof of the next building, safely landing and continuing her dash. Some people looked up towards her, and she waved to them with a smile.

Mirise was well-liked in Avasine. While no one knew much _about_ her, nearly everyone knew _of_ her, as she was the adopted daughter of the mayor of the city. She was like a permanent fixture of the city, a cerulean streak among the buildings of white. Where she went, there could often be found droplets of water trailing her. This was, however, rarely noticed by anyone and no one would be able to guess the true source of them.

She continued jumping onto lower and lower roofs, soon reaching street level. She had made her way to one of the markets, and walked up to a nearby fruit stand.

"Good day to you, Mirise! May I interest you in some fruit?" the merchant asked.  
"Certainly, mister Deen," Mirise replied cheerfully. "I'll have some apples."  
"Of course." As the merchant wrapped a few apples in a piece of cloth, Mirise picked out a handful of coins from a pouch hanging from her skirt. She handed over the coins and received the package, opening it to start munching on one of the fruits before walking away.  
"Your apples are juicy today, mister Deen," she mentioned before disappearing among the various stands in the marketplace.

At the same time, at the northern docks of Avasine, the ship with the name _Cassandra_ had finally made it to port. Her single crewmember stepped onto solid ground for the first time in many days, and as he tied a rope to one of the many mooring posts, was approached by a dock worker.  
"Welcome to Avasine, sir," the worker said. "If you wish to keep your ship here, the docking fee is 2500 beli. In advance."  
"Oh, ah, sure..." the man said as he reached into his pocket, producing three bills worth a thousand beli each and handed them to the worker. As he got his change back, a deep growling was heard from his stomach.  
"Hungry after the trip?"  
"I haven't eaten for two days... can you tell me where the closest restaurant is?"  
"Well, there's a café with good food just around the corner here," the dock worker said and waved his hand towards a nearby building. "Do you need a place to stay, too?"  
"I was thinking I'd sleep on the boat..."  
"Truth be told, sir, you don't want to do that. I understand if you might want to guard it, but we have workers around the clock. There is so much going on everywhere all the time here, so you would be lucky to get any significant sleep. It's not the cheapest, but if you just follow the road past the café to the market, then turn right, you'll find the Veranda Hotel. Nice rooms, busy bar, some good entertainment too."  
"I'll consider it, thanks. I'll go eat, than get my things off the boat."  
"By the way, sir, what name should we note for you and the boat?" the dock worker asked, having opened up a small registry book.  
"Oh, the boat's _Cassandra_. As for me, the name's James Conrad."  
"...Conrad. Alright then, mister Conrad, we will take care of your boat for as long as you wish. I hope you enjoy your stay in Avasine."  
James shook the worker's hand. "I'm sure I will."

As James started walking towards the café he had been informed about, he looked at the buildings around him. Everything was in a shade of white, and a lot of it seemed to glint in the sunlight. No wonder they called this the pristine city. He rounded the corner, spotting a sign with the name _Dockside Café_ on it. Figuring it had to be the place he had been told about, he took a seat at one of the tables on the patio. It wasn't long before a waitress in a blue dress walked up to his table, having spotted the new customer.  
"Welcome, sir! Can I take your order?" she asked.  
James took a quick glance at the menu. He didn't really care what he'd get, he just needed food. "Ah, sure," he said. "Let's see, I'll have a two-fish sandwich, large garlic pasta, chips with meat sauce and a large dark ale, thank you very much."  
The waitress wrote down his order. "That's a lot of food, sure you want all that?"  
"Well, I haven't really eaten anything for two days... I need to fill up."  
"I understand, sir. Then, I'll be out with your sandwich and drink in just a moment."  
"That would be awesome."  
The waitress made her way back into the restaurant with the order as James leaned back in his chair and looked around at the other tables. Mostly normal people, but one caught his eye. A few tables over, with her back towards him, sat a dark-haired woman with a black triangular hat and a dark red coat draped over her shoulders. She put the hat on the table and placed some order, but James couldn't hear what. She then took out a long, thin pipe and started smoking. The waitress for James's table returned with his first items at the same time the woman received hers, so all James noted was that the only thing she had delivered to her was a single cup. But there was no time for observations now. He grabbed the sandwich from the plate in front of him and took a large bite. Reinvigorated, he had eaten half of it before he even had noticed it himself. Sure, it wasn't the best sandwich ever made - two pieces of bread, some salad, two kinds of fish, some basic dressing and a bit of oil - but to James, it was heaven. This was what he would remember as the most important sandwich he had ever eaten in his life. Starting to drink his ale, he finished the sandwich shortly before the waitress returned with his pasta and chips. For the rest of the meal, James took a little more time to enjoy the dishes, not having any problems finishing it all even though it was, as the waitress had informed him, quite a lot of food. James even figured he could eat some more, and ordered another two-fish sandwich to go before paying. With his lunch all done, James threw a glance towards the table where he had seen the woman earlier, but she was gone. Not thinking more about it, James returned to _Cassandra_ and collected the things he'd need. With a sack slung over his shoulder, he started munching on the sandwich as he started looking for the hotel he had been told about. He wouldn't mind spending some cash for comfort - he had a bit of money saved up, and in a pinch a few somewhat valuable items he could sell off. He wasn't planning on staying in Avasine for too long, but he needed to stock up for the next trip... and seriously reconsider traveling on his own. He soon noticed that the crowd became thicker, and realized he had reached the market. Making a mental note of that he'd have to check it out later, he took a right turn and left the market without much trouble, even if he had to apply his elbows a bit. Looking at the signs, he soon found that he had reached his goal - the Veranda Hotel. From the outside, it looked a nice place. Entering the building, he came to what seemed to be a combined lobby and bar, with more people sitting around drinking than he'd have expected there to be at this time of day. He found what he could identify as the front desk and rang a small bell sitting upon it.  
"Coming, sir," he heard from behind him. Turning around, he saw the bartender rinse his hands and walk up to the desk where James was standing.  
"So are you the bartender, or..."  
"Bartender, front manager, anything that's needed," he said. "Name's Sam Lamon. You got a room booked?"  
"Oh, no, I just arrived. Are there any available?"  
"Sure. We have, let's see... we have a bed in a four person room, if you don't mind sharing. Nice people. Bed doubles as a storage chest you can lock, so no worries about anyone stealing anything."  
"Sure, that'll do."  
"How long are you planning on staying?"  
"Not sure. A few nights."  
"Well, it's two thousand beli per night, and that includes breakfast. Ten thousand for a week if you pay in advance."  
James pondered his situation. While he wasn't really planning on staying very long, he also wasn't in any rush. "Sign me up for a week, then." He flipped through a few bills and handed over the agreed upon price to the manager.  
"Very good, sir. Name?"  
"James Conrad."  
The manager wrote his name down and handed him two keys. "Here's for the room and your storage. Room 316. And since you're new, let me tell you that you don't want to miss the show this evening. Starts in about five hours, on the lobby scene. You won't believe your ears."  
"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."

James made it up the stairs to the third floor and found his way to his room. There weren't anyone else currently there, but three of the beds had clearly been used, so he opened up the fourth one, put his sack in the storage space and locked it with the key. Putting the key in his inner shirt pocket and taking off his shoes, he laid down on the bed.

His first experience of Avasine had been mostly positive. He could surely find what he needed here. And more than anything, he needed someone who knew how to navigate, was his final thought before he drifted off into a nap.


	2. The singer at the Veranda Hotel

_"Let her go!"_  
 _"James!"_  
 _"I said, LET MY SISTER GO!"_  
 _James pulled his fist back and started running towards the..._

A clang woke James up from his dream. With a small grunt, he looked towards the direction the sound had come from. Another person, clearly one of the others staying in the room, had dropped a mug on the floor.  
"Did I wake you up?" he asked. "Sorry, mate!"  
James looked at the other person. He looked a bit older, maybe around forty, with a thick beard.  
"No worries," James said. "I shouldn't sleep any more now if I want to be able to sleep tonight. What time is it?"  
"Almost five o' clock," the other man replied. "Everyone's gathering in the bar for the show."  
"Oh yeah, I heard about that," James replied. "Have you seen it before?"  
"'course I have," he said. "You're new here, I take it? Trust me, you don't wanna miss this. I was just heading down, so you should come too."  
James stood up and nodded. "Alright, I'll check it out," he said as the other man walked up to him. James held out his hand. "I'm James, by the way."  
The other man shook his hand and smiled. "Name's Wick. You staying for long?"  
"Wasn't planning on it. A week or so."  
"On the move, then?"  
"Well, I set sail five days ago, this was my first destination... but if I want to continue sailing, it turns out that I need to partner up with someone better at navigation than me."  
Wick nodded. "Ah, young people who think they can handle everything themselves. At least you survived!"  
"Well, yeah, but-" James protested.  
"Now, let's not dawdle around, the show should start soon! C'mon!" With that, Wick grabbed James's hand and dragged him to the lobby area.

While the few things James had heard about the entertainment he was about to witness had made him figure there'd be a lot of people in the audience, he had not quite expected the entire combined lobby and bar to be packed. This had to be something extra. Wick insisted on buying him a beer, and the lobby was full of sounds of people talking and the clinking of glasses. It was hard to hear yourself think, and carrying on a conversation seemed nearly impossible. As James had downed half his glass, the lighting in the room lowered slightly and a spotlight turned on at the stage, making James notice that the only thing on there was a piano with a bottle of water standing on top of it. A piano performance? That couldn't be all. But the whole room quieted down as a dark-skinned man with short black hair, dressed in a black suit, walked onto the stage. He bowed before starting to speak.  
"Welcome, everyone, for tonight's performance. Amazing to see so many of you here again, and I'm sure we have some new faces. I'm Ricky, and here is who you all came to see - Avasine's magic voice, Rink!"  
The whole room applauded as the man took place behind the piano and a woman walked to the center of the stage. She had shoulder-length, curly red-brown hair, an eyepatch over her right eye, wore a simple, short-sleeved white buttoned shirt and a knee-length dark blue skirt. James figured she looked kind of rough, was probably about his age, and people wouldn't come here just to look at her. This _really_ had to be something extra.  
"Good evening, everyone," the singer apparently called Rink spoke, "nice to see so many of you here again." James couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something about her voice - something pleasant. Maybe there actually was more to this.  
"Why don't we start with a short classic tune, that I'm sure you all know..."  
She started humming a tune, the piano player soon starting to play to it. A lot of the audience started clapping to the rhythm for a bit, before she started on the first verse.

 _Every day, we bet our life_  
 _Every day, we toil and strife_  
 _Yo ho ho, and ye he he_  
 _A sailor's life for me!_

Most of the audience joined in on the two last lines, followed by a single hand clap before Rink started on the next verse.

 _Every day, we face the waves_  
 _Every day, we all stand brave_  
 _Yo ho ho, and ye he he_  
 _A sailor's life for me!_

"I've heard this song before," James said to Wick as the pianist played a short solo.  
"Not surprising, it's a pretty well-known one," came the reply, "but I doubt you've heard it like this."

 _Every day, the sky is blue_  
 _Every day, I'm missing you_  
 _Yo ho ho, and ye he he_  
 _A sailor's life for me!_

 _Every day, we will go on_  
 _Every day, until we're done_  
 _Yo ho ho, and ye he he_  
 _A sailor's life for me!_

The room once again joined in the chorus before the song silenced and was replaced by a roaring applause.

"So, what did you think?" Wick asked James.  
"Well, it was... nice, I guess. I mean, she has a nice voice, but... it was kind of a simple song," James noted.  
"Well, the crowd likes the classic shanties," Wick replied. "But just wait until she gets going with her own stuff."  
"She writes songs herself, too?" James asked.  
"Well... writes might not really be the word," Wick said. "Most of her fans find it more accurate to say that she creates them."  
"What's the difference?"  
"You'll see what I mean."  
As the applause died out, she had already started humming again. This time, James didn't recognize the tune at all. The piano player started playing a few notes, and soon Rink opened her mouth to let out an escalating sound.

No - it was more accurate to say it was several intertwined sounds. James perked up and started listening more carefully. The song did not seem to contain any words, and even with the piano accompaniment, James was a bit confused. He had never heard anything like this before, and it seemed like it shouldn't be possible for one person to create all that sound at once. After a short while, he turned back to Wick, who had finished his glass.  
"How does she do that?" he asked.  
Wick shrugged. "No one knows. She just... does," he replied. "There's a reason she's called the magic voice. None of us have heard this song before. She never explains anything, but she has said that some of her pieces are made up on the spot."  
"That's kinda impressive," James noted.  
"But no matter what, Ricky can follow her," Wick said. "All credit to him, too."  
James nodded and finished his glass as the music ended, and soon another song filled the room. This one, at least, had words, but James didn't recognize it either.  
"Oh, this one's good," Wick told James. "She created it a few weeks ago."

 _Every lifetime that I've spent_  
 _Chasing after you_  
 _Every night that I have dreamt_  
 _It would be us two_

 _But each time it all repeats no matter what I do_  
 _Reaching out for what I had, just to be told "no"_

 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _for that fleeting moment_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _if I can see you_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _just to hold your hand again_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _once more in my head..._

"I see what you mean," James said with a nod as the song continued.

 _When I feel I should give up_  
 _I still see your face_  
 _When I feel I've been locked up_  
 _Trapped inside a maze_

 _All the tears that I have shed_  
 _Over what I lost_  
 _All the tears inside my head_  
 _Is the only cost_

 _But each time it all repeats no matter what I do_  
 _Reaching out for what I had, just to be told "no"_

 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _for that fleeting moment_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _if I can see you_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _just to hold your hand again_  
 _I'll come back, I'll come back_  
 _once more in my head..._

Two rounds of the chorus later, the song died out, and Rink took a swig from the water bottle.  
"Do we have any requests tonight?" Rink shouted. "What do you want to hear?"  
Many different shouts came from the audience.  
"The one with the rabbit!"  
"Starlight!"  
"The ballad of old Santiago!"  
"Bink's!"  
"Something about Gold Roger!"  
"Drinking song!"  
"Memories!"  
"One at a time, one at a time," Rink laughed. "But let's go with _Memories,_ shall we?"

The crowd cheered and applauded as Ricky started playing a slow tune. Rink hummed along for a bit before she started singing with a slightly melancholic voice, and the crowd quieted down again.

 _When I was young, living so free_  
 _I was chasing my own dream_  
 _Reading the map only I could see_  
 _Leading to my treasure_

 _I kept it with me, each single day_  
 _Searching my place of wonder_  
 _Nobody could take away_  
 _My own limitless dream_

 _So long ago_

 _And now it's nothing but a dusty picture_

 _But it's still with me_  
 _every day_  
 _And it's in everything I ever dream of_

 _One of these days I will find what I have been looking for_  
 _Everything might collapse but I'll never close the door_  
 _I am still a dreamer, I am not afraid_  
 _That my memories will fade_

 _When I was young, I sang a song_  
 _With the heart of a dreamer_  
 _The melody that would keep it strong_  
 _And would bring me closer_

 _Everyone sang it with me_  
 _Everyone with their own dreams_  
 _I wondered if they could see_  
 _Their own treasures as well_

 _So long ago_

 _And now it's nothing but a distant whisper_

 _But I still believe_  
 _in everyone_  
 _And everything that they could ever dream of_

 _One of these days I will know what I have been singing for_  
 _Everyone might be gone but I'll never close the door_  
 _I am still a dreamer, I am not afraid_  
 _That my lonely song will fade_

 _I am still a dreamer, I am not afraid_  
 _That my memories will fade..._

As the piano player finished up the song, a few sniffs could be heard from the audience before the applauses picked up. James wasn't surprised - the song had made him think back to his own home, his own childhood, and everything since... but it was soon drowned by another, happier melody as the show continued.

Fourteen songs and three rounds of beer for James later, Rink took a bow.  
"Thank you for tonight," she said. "It has been lovely as usual, and I hope to see you again tomorrow." Applause and cheers filled the room as flowers were thrown onto the stage by admirers in the front rows. Rink stopped to pick up a yellow rose, then left the stage. Ricky remained in his place, and as the cheering quieted down, started playing some background music. Some people left the hotel, having only come to listen to Rink, some returned to their drinking, some went back to their rooms. James looked at Wick.  
"So... who is she?" he asked.  
"I don't know that much about her," Wick replied. "I've only been here two months. I'm told she's been working here for a year, and she used to mingle after performances, but lately she just wanders off. Some people have said they've seen her leaving the hotel, but there's not any talk of her going anywhere. She's not seen around very much, especially not at night."  
"Hm..."  
"Speaking of which, Avasine has a bustling nightlife," Wick said with a laugh and put his hand on James's shoulder. "You're still young, you should go out and have some fun while you're here!"  
"Maybe I will," James replied thoughtfully while glancing at the now half-empty stage. "Maybe I will."


	3. Avasine by night

The sun had set, but Avasine's streets were lit up by lamps set up outside almost every establishment. Restaurants and food stands could be found everywhere, and people had filled the streets, drinking, dancing, taking in the entertainment that were to be had. Merchants had set up stands in every corner, street performers did what they could to earn some extra beli.

James exited the Veranda Hotel into this busy crowd. He figured it was about time to find something for dinner, and to check out what was going on here at night. He strolled down the street in the direction of the marketplace, observing the crowds on the way.

Avasine certainly was a gathering spot for all kinds of people. Citizens, travelers, marines, probably even a number of pirates, all coming together to enjoy the night. James had no goal in mind, he was just planning on seeing where the streets took him for a bit. Or until he got too hungry to continue, whichever came first. Most restaurants seemed pretty crowded, though.

At the same time, James wondered how he could best find someone to travel with, someone who could navigate. He had been figuring he'd start looking in the morning, but most people here would most likely be either visitors already in some sort of crew, or citizens without the skills he was looking for. Perhaps he'd have to stay longer than he anticipated and study navigation himself for a bit.

Despite his lack of navigation skill, James found Avasine easy to find his way around. Each block had its own characteristics, streets were clearly marked, and there didn't really seem to be anywhere to get yourself lost. James knew it had been built over a period of time, with additions expanding the city outwards, so he was fairly impressed by the coherency of it. Someone had planned well.

James reached the market square. While it had been crowded when he walked past it earlier in the day, that had been nothing compared to how busy it was now. Merchants tried to get customers to spend their beli at their stands using every trick in the book, and barely any transaction was made without haggling first. James tried to see what was being sold, but didn't get much of a look through the crowds of people. Going by the shouts of the merchants, though, he picked up on the availability of wine, cheap jewelry, swords, books, treasure maps, fine dresses, and something apparently called a log pose. Not really being enough in the market for anything to want to fight through the crowd, and figuring he should save his cash for stuff he actually needed, James squeezed past the hordes and made his way to a quieter back street. Only a few serving establishments lined this one, and James only spotted people moving towards the market - none away from it. He kept walking, deciding he wanted to see what was at the end of this block.

Rounding a corner a few buildings down, he found himself not far from the edge of Avasine. It wasn't the docks, they were on the other side, but he could hear the water. And something else.

Voices from an alley just a bit further ahead, and they sounded pretty gruff. Though also one lighter voice, sounding like a young girl... James decided to see what was going on. Peeking into the alley, he saw two larger men, shaggy, unshaven, unkempt clothes, terrible attitude. They were talking to - well, talking down at, really - a smaller girl, with a soft face, a smile on her face, light blue clothes, short blonde hair that turned another colour at the end, surprisingly calm.

"We've been out to sea for months, we just want some companionship, hmm?" one of the men said to the girl.  
"I assure you, sirs, you're wasting your time," the girl replied without appearing worried at all.  
"Oh yeah? Well, who said you had a choice?" the other man responded, moving his hand towards her shoulder. With a swift motion, she slapped it away.  
"Oh, that does it!"  
"Seriously?" James asked as he stepped into the alley, all six eyes turning to him.  
"Who are you, dude?" one of the men asked.  
"What are you trying to do with this poor girl?"  
"What's it to you?"  
"Really, sir, I can handle this," the girl told James, ignoring the men. One of them turned to her and swung his arm in her direction.  
"Shut up!"  
James took a few long steps into the alley, the other man moving in front of him.  
"You better stay out of this if-"  
He didn't get to finish his sentence before James planted his fist into the man's cheek, followed by a kick to the stomach. He glanced over towards the girl, who didn't appear to be in any trouble at all - the other man was trying to punch or grab her, but she dodged anything he tried with surprisingly fluid motions. But he didn't have time for a lot of observations, as the one he had assaulted was back on his case.  
"Oh, you've done it now," he said and pulled a knife.  
"You guys have no manners at all, do you?" James asked. Not that he figured he'd have any troubles - these guys didn't seem to know a lot about fighting besides general brawling, and were clearly somewhat drunk as well. James easily dodged a few swings from the knife, and after an attempted stab, grabbed the man's arm in a tight hold. Giving it a jerk, the man dropped the knife, and James tossed the man to the ground. He heard a splash, and saw the girl crouched, the other man having slipped on something - and as he stumbled downwards, the girl swiftly brought her knee up towards his face, making contact with his nose. He fell backwards, his nose now bloody and probably broken. His head hit the ground, knocking him out.  
"Hey!" The man James had brought down was now sitting up again, apparently prepared to continue. James just sighed, took a step towards him and delivered another punch to his face, leaving him out cold as well, before switching his attention back to the girl.  
"You okay?" he asked.  
"Certainly, sir," the girl said. "Really, I could have handled them myself. This isn't my first night out."  
"This has happened before?"  
"Oh, yes," the girl replied. "And always new arrivals, too," she said while inspecting James. "Speaking of which, you don't look like you're from around here."  
"No, I arrived earlier today," James said.  
"Welcome to Avasine, then," the girl replied and stretched out her hand. "Thank you for the help, anyway. I'm Mirise Lake."  
"No problem," James replied and returned the handshake. "James Conrad." Before James had let go, his stomach gave off a small rumble. Mirise giggled.  
"Hungry, sir?" she asked.  
James chuckled. "Fighting makes me hungry. But I was planning on getting something to eat soon anyway. Know of any good restaurants?"  
"I do, but if you just came here, you shouldn't go to a restaurant! If you want to get a good taste of what Avasine has, you should check out the food vendors in the street," Mirise said. "The trick is to get a small portion from a lot of them as you walk around."  
"Well, alright then," James replied. "I'll give it a try."  
"I can show you around, if you like," Mirise replied. "As thanks for helping out."  
"Didn't you say you didn't need my help?" James asked. "But I'll certainly take you up on that offer."  
"Let's go, then," Mirise said and grabbed James' hand again.  
"Wait a second," James said and bent down, picking up the knife one of the men had dropped. "This isn't a bad knife. I think I'll keep it." He put it in his belt, and then let Mirise guide him back into the nightlife of Avasine.

A while later, they were sitting on a bench in a less busy part of the city again, seven packets of food between them. James grabbed a wooden box and opened it up, taking in the smell of steamed noodles and clams. Mirise, on her side, was nibbling on a dried spicy squid. White curry, apple rice, grilled crescent crab, sea salt salad and stir-fried beef was also on their Avasine sampler menu. They passed food back and forth between them, talking, laughing, Mirise answering anything James had to ask about Avasine. Eventually, James swallowed the last bite of crab and leaned backwards.

"Man, I'm stuffed," he exclaimed. "That tasted great, thanks for the advice."  
"No problem at all," Mirise replied. "I love this kind of food too."  
"You had me pay for it all, though," James responded.  
"Hey now, if it hadn't been for me we wouldn't have gotten the curry for free," Mirise replied. James laughed.  
"Aah, now I'm ready to go to sleep," James said. "But first, maybe you'd like to see my boat?"  
"You have your own boat?" Mirise asked.  
"Sure do, built her myself," James replied.  
"You a shipwright, then?"  
"Ahaha, no. It was... the first time I tried," James said before standing up. "Come on, docks aren't far from here, I think."  
Mirise stood up as well, following James towards the docks. As they reached it, James concluded that the dockworker had been right - the sounds from the city reached the open docks very well, trying to sleep on the boat would have been an exercise in futility. He soon located his vessel, pointing it out for Mirise.  
"There she is. _Cassandra_."  
Mirise let out a little gasp. "It's that one!"  
"What?"  
"I saw when you arrived," Mirise replied. "A small ship, kinda clumsy..."  
"Hey-"  
"But now that I see her up close, she's got something," Mirise continued. "It's a nice boat."  
"Thanks," James said. "Building her was easier than sailing with her, though..."  
"Hm?"  
"Turns out, there's more to traveling with a boat than making it point the right way," James said. "Having a map and a compass doesn't mean I can navigate."  
Mirise giggled. "I can understand that," she said. "You have to know how the sea flows, too. Which way it wants to go."  
"I suppose," James replied. He sat down at the edge of the docks, Mirise did the same. They looked out towards the horizon.  
"Do you like the sea, mister Conrad?" Mirise asked.  
"Like..." James said, searching for the words. "I don't think I've ever thought of the sea as a thing to like or dislike," he continued. "It's something that's always there."  
"I love the sea," Mirise said. "I've always felt a connection to it. I don't know why, though. But sometimes it's like it speaks to me."  
"Have you seen much of it?" James asked.  
"No," Mirise replied. "I've never left Avasine. The only sea I know is the one I can see from here, but I know there's something else out there. Some day, I want to see more of it." She turned to look at James. "Why do you travel, mister Conrad?"  
James sighed. "I had to... get away," he said. "Avasine was my first goal, I figured it would be a good place to prepare for the rest of the journey... I don't have any goal in mind, but I don't feel like being settled anymore." He looked up towards the night sky. "And I guess... I wanted to see the world."  
"How long are you staying here?" Mirise asked.  
"I don't know," James replied. "I've paid for a week at the hotel, but I'm not leaving until I actually know I can leave. Get supplies, figure out where to go... and how to get there."  
"I can tell you're a good man, mister Conrad," Mirise said. "Allow me to be your guide to Avasine while you're here. At least until you've learned the city yourself."  
"I'll certainly take you up on that offer," James replied. "Avasine's a nice city, isn't it?"  
"I love Avasine," Mirise replied. "There's so many people here. There's always new people to meet, and I know so many of the people living here. I enjoy that."  
James nodded and yawned before he started to stand up. "Well, now I really feel like I need to get some sleep," he said. "So, let's meet up tomorrow?"  
"That sounds good to me," Mirise said. "Where are you staying?"  
"The Veranda Hotel," James replied. "You know of it?"  
"I know where it is, but I've never been inside," Mirise replied. "I'll find you tomorrow, then. I think I'll sit here a little longer."  
"Alright, see you tomorrow," James said. "And thanks for today."  
"Same to you, mister Conrad," Mirise replied before James left. She looked out over the ocean for a little while, then she closed her eyes and leaned backwards. She counted to ten in her head before she shifted her body weight forwards and dived into the sea.


	4. Rendezvous

Over the following days, Mirise showed James the ins and outs of Avasine. At least on the surface - to show every little facet would take months. Since he wasn't planning on staying for too long, there were a lot of things he didn't even need to know. But for a visitor, he got the best guide and most complete introduction to Avasine that anyone could wish for. It was far from the first time Mirise had acted as such a guide to the city, but the way they had met was unique - in most other cases she had showed someone around, it had started with a question directed at her about where to find something particular because she happened to be close by, and ended with a four-hour trip around the city.

Mirise saw something in James, something she wasn't entirely able to put her finger on. But he had helped her, risking to get hurt himself in the process - so it was the least she could do for him. It helped that James appeared to be genuinely interested whenever Mirise started going off on some tangent about Avasine's history, structure or people, even though it was of no importance to him. Despite that he was in the middle of traveling and was planning on leaving soon, and had said that Avasine was just a place for him to gear up for the journey, he was more than ready to spend time with Mirise even when they didn't do anything that involved any travel preparations.

James always made sure to catch Rink's shows at the hotel. The mysterious singer intrigued him, and he had attempted to speak to her, but never managed to get her attention. Speaking to the hotel manager didn't amount to anything either - even if James wasn't one of her obsessed fans, she had a strict policy against having the manager bring people to her, he explained. She'd always take the first contact - there'd be no end to the people asking about her if it was any other way.

James and Mirise would meet up every morning. More specifically, James would leave the hotel after breakfast, and within twenty minutes Mirise would have found him, no matter which way he went. James wasn't entirely sure how she did it, and when asked, her answers didn't actually give him any new information.

It had been five days since he arrived. The two of them had spent the morning in usual fashion, and were now sitting down at the Dockside Café, waiting for their lunch.

"So, I mean," James said, "it has to be people I can trust too, so I don't just want to hire someone..."  
"And you're not finding anyone?" Mirise asked.  
"It's hard, you know?" James replied. "I don't know where to look at this point, people in the docks are all already on some crew, and-"  
"Hey!" someone shouted from the street, interrupting James. Everyone in the vicinity turned their heads to find the source - but James and Mirise were the only ones who recognized them. "It's those two!"  
Two men, one with a bandaged nose, holding an iron pipe over his shoulder. The other one had his fists clenched, with chains wrapped around his hands. Indeed, it was the two men that had harassed Mirise, the two they had beaten up a few days ago.  
"You're the one who stole my dagger!" the guy with the chains shouted, pointing at James.  
"Now, now..." James started, but was interrupted by the other guy.  
"And don't think I've forgotten what you did to me," he said and pointed with the pipe at Mirise. Around them, people were talking, whispering, stepping backwards, but nobody seemed to be ready to step in to help. Mostly unarmed and drunk, they had been one thing, but now they seemed pretty intent on getting their revenge, and with those weapons they could do a lot of damage.  
"Ah, crap," James said and turned to Mirise. "Should we run, or..."  
"If we run, we might drag other people into it," Mirise said and picked up a knife from the table. "I guess we started this, after all."  
"You're gonna fight with that?" James asked as they both stood up. "I left the knife... well, dagger at the hotel..."  
"Yes and no," Mirise replied as the two men approached them. James held his hands up and thought he heard a dripping sound from the other side of the table, but didn't get any time to think about that before a cup came flying through the air.  
"Look out!" the man with chains on his hands said.  
"Huh?" was all the other one managed to express before the cup struck the right side of his head, the still hot contents mostly splashing over him. He dropped the pipe and brought his hands up to his head. "Ow ow ow!"  
Almost everyone who had seen what happened looked around to find the source of the cup. A few tables from where James and Mirise had been sitting, a woman was standing up with her right arm still in a post-throw position. A woman with reddish-brown hair, an eyepatch over her right eye, thin pipe in her left hand and a devious smile on her face.  
"You really want to do this?" she said before jumping over the railing that fenced in the outside area of the café and faced the duo. "You want to cause trouble here?"  
"What's it to you?" the man who she hadn't hit asked.  
"It's her!" James exclaimed and looked at Mirise.  
"Who?" Mirise asked in response.  
"The singer!" James replied before stepping over the railing himself, and Mirise soon did the same. The people around them had started noticing that not only Mirise but also Rink, two of the more popular people in Avasine, were involved and had started closing in, surrounding the scene. The man who had been hit by the cup raised his head and looked around.  
"This isn't your business! And... why is everyone..."  
"I felt like making it my business," Rink replied and flashed a smile. "And, you know, I'm kinda famous around here," she said while approaching, several people now walking behind her.  
"Dude..." the other man said and put his hand on the other's arm. "Maybe it's time to..."  
"Arrrgh!" the bandaged man exclaimed. "This isn't fair!" he shouted before the two of them started running the other way.  
Rink walked up to where they had been, approaching James and Mirise. "What was with those guys, anyway?"  
"We kinda beat them up a few days ago," James replied. "By the way, it's nice to finally get to meet you!"  
"Do I know you?" Rink asked, looking at James.  
"No, I... I'm staying at the Veranda Hotel. I've been seeing your shows, and I've been interested..."  
"Huh," Rink replied and turned her head to look at Mirise. "I've seen you around town... aren't you Theodore's girl?"  
"Correct, miss," Mirise replied. "Mirise Lake," she continued and stretched out her hand.  
"Rink. Rink Kazai," Rink said and shook her hand.  
"And I'm James Conrad," James said and got a handshake as well. "Can I... talk to you?"  
"Talk?" Rink asked and bent down to pick up the empty cup she had thrown. "Well, you can buy me a new cup of tea..."  
The crowds around them started to return to whatever business they had been attending to before it all, with a few people remaining who seemed to mostly be looking at Rink. The three of them walked back to the table James and Mirise had been sitting at, and Rink pulled up another chair. A waitress was standing next to it, having stopped to witness the events that had just unfolded.  
"Oh..." she started saying. "Your... food will be right out."  
"Sorry for the mess," Rink said and handed her the empty cup. "Get me another cup of tea, and put it on his bill," she continued and pointed with her thumb at James.  
"Certainly, miss Kazai," the waitress said and disappeared into the café.  
"They seem to know you," James said and looked back at Rink. She certainly looked less fancy, so to speak, than she did during her performances. Even if she was wearing essentially the same outfit, plus that coat she had over her shoulders... "That's it!" he exclaimed.  
Rink raised her eyebrow and took a drag on her pipe. "What now?"  
"I saw you when I had just arrived here," James explained. "I went to this café to eat, and I saw you sitting at one of the tables."  
"And then you came to stay at the hotel where I work," Rink said. "Small world. But I come here for tea usually twice a week."  
"Good tea?" James asked.  
"You tell me," Rink said with a shrug. "I don't like tea."  
"You don't- then why do you order it?" James said.  
"I have my reasons," Rink replied, apparently not interested in shedding any further light on the subject.

It didn't take long for Rink's new cup of tea to be delivered, alongside James and Mirise's food. James received a two-fish sandwich and a small bowl of garlic chips, while Mirise had just ordered a shrimp salad.

"So what was the deal with those guys?" Rink asked James. "They said something about you stealing something?"  
"I ran into them my first night here," James explained as he started eating his sandwich. "They were bothering Mirise, so, well, we gave them a beating and one of them had a dagger that I took, I figured they deserved it."  
"Sounds fair," Rink replied and grabbed some chips from James's bowl.  
"Hey, those are-"  
"So, what did you want to talk about?" she asked and started chewing.  
"Oh, um... you, I guess," James said. "Your singing, it's... like nothing I've ever heard."  
"They say that," Rink replied. "Mister... Conrad, was it? What do you know about the world?"  
James sighed. "Less than I'd like to," he said. "I'm... I'm traveling, but I'm just starting. I want to learn more... and that's why I'm asking, I suppose."  
"What I do and how I do it is perhaps not normal, but sometimes you start wondering what's normal and what's not," Rink said. "And it's not the strangest thing out there. It's not even the strangest thing in this city."  
"So... you're not going to answer, are you?" James asked.  
"No," Rink said and started drinking her tea.  
"Are you going to answer anything relating to yourself?"  
"Maybe," she said. "You're not the usual kind I get."  
"They said you used to mingle with the crowd after your shows but don't do that anymore," James said. "Any reason for that?"  
"A few," Rink replied. "It was just going on repeat, I guess. You know how when you have everything, even that gets boring. I don't even have to flirt anymore, I can just pick and choose who I want."  
"Hm..."  
"So what about you?" Rink asked and looked at Mirise. "Are you two..."  
"No, no, not at all," Mirise said, having finished her salad. "He helped me, and I've just been guiding him around town."  
"Makes sense," Rink replied and returned to drinking.

As they had all finished their food and drinks, James went to pay the bill before the three of them left the café. Normally, James and Mirise would continue their trip around the city, but after what had occurred, today would be different.

"Well, my dad's probably heard about what happened here by now, so he'll want to know I'm alright," Mirise said. "I should go home."  
"Are we still on for dinner tonight?" James asked.  
"Yeah, I'll meet you at half past six," Mirise said before disappearing down the street.  
"She's a cutie," Rink said. "Sounds strange, though..."  
"What's wrong with her voice?" James asked.  
"Not her voice, her... nevermind," Rink replied as she started walking towards the docks, with James following.  
"By the way," James said, "who's Theodore?"  
"Hm?" Rink said and looked at James with a confused expression. "You... don't know? He's the mayor of Avasine."  
James stopped, looked at Rink and blinked a few times. " _What?_ "


	5. Come with me

It took 43 seconds for Rink to stop laughing at James. He briefly wondered if she ever stopped to breathe.

"Come on, how was I supposed to..." James said, slightly red-faced.  
"You spent days... and she never... and you didn't ask... and oh my god," Rink said in between her bursts of laughter.  
"Of all the people I'd run into, I get the mayor's daughter..." James said, mostly to himself.  
"I thought that was the whole reason you hung out with her!"  
"I helped her, and she showed me around as thanks! That's all there is to it!"  
"Oh, my god..." Rink said before collecting herself and taking a deep breath. "Still, I like that..."  
"What?" James asked.  
"You're an interesting man, mister Conrad," Rink said. "You're sincere."  
"I am?"  
"You have an air of honesty about you that you don't see every day," Rink said. "I can appreciate that."  
"So what are you going to do now?" James asked.  
"Now?"  
"Well, right now," James said.  
"Why?"  
"My plans until the evening got freed up, so..."  
"You want to hang out with me?" Rink asked.  
"Well... if you don't mind," James said. "I still haven't gotten any answers about you."  
"Don't expect any," Rink said. "But sure, why not? You're quite different from most people who'd want to spend time with me."  
"How so?"  
"How many people do you think would want to have lunch with the mayor's daughter and the most famous singer in town?" Rink asked in response as she continued walking towards the docks.  
"Well... a lot, I guess," James replied.  
"But you didn't care about that," Rink said. "It didn't matter to you that that's what we are. You considered us equals. Don't get me wrong, I love all my fans, but it's refreshing to meet someone like you."  
"What do you mean?" James asked.  
"A lot of people are quick to put you on a pedestal just because you're famous," Rink said. "It's made it hard for me to make any real friends, despite all the fans I have."  
"Well, I liked your shows..." James started.  
"But why did you like them?"  
"Like I said, the way you sing... it was something new," James said. "So I wanted to ask you about that."  
"You took an academic interest in it," Rink said. "That's something new for me. Most people don't really care about how I do what I do."  
"So... how do you do it?" James asked. "Like... that thing you do when you sound like you're more than one person singing."  
"Oh, the fractal harmonies?" Rink asked.  
"...is that a real thing?" James replied.  
"As far as you know. We artists have our trade secrets," Rink replied. "More to the point, what's your deal?"  
"Sorry?"  
"Why are you here? Why did you come to Avasine?"  
"Oh, I've started a journey, and Avasine was my first stop," James replied. "To prepare for what's to come."  
"Where are you going?" Rink asked.  
"Wherever I end up," James replied. "I don't have a goal. I just want to see the world."  
"Not been around much?"  
"No, not... not by myself," James said. "Or, rather, not on my own terms."  
"Finally got a chance to be independent, eh?" Rink said. "So how are you getting around?"  
"I have my own boat," James replied. "I'm docked just around here."  
"Bought it?"  
"Built it."  
"You built your own boat?" Rink asked with a voice that hinted at the speaker being impressed, but trying to hide it.  
"Well, I had help, but yeah," James replied. "You wanna see it?" he asked before catching himself with a chuckle.  
"Sure, why not?" Rink said. "And what's so funny?"  
"I just remembered that I did the same thing with Mirise the first day we met," James replied.  
"So that's your idea of a good date?" Rink asked. "'Hey girl, want to see my boat?'"  
"I guess I'm just proud of it," James said.  
"You should be," Rink said. "Building a boat... that's not something you just 'do', you know. It takes effort."  
"Yeah," James said with a nod and a smile as he spotted his boat close by. He stopped and stretched out his arm towards it. "Allow me to introduce you to _Cassandra_."  
"Huh." Rink looked down at the boat in front of her. She wasn't a very large vessel, obviously not designed to hold a lot of people. One cabin at the back, a storage hatch on the deck in the front.  
"What do you think?" James asked.  
"She's small, but..." Rink said, trailing off for a few moments, searching for the words.  
"But what?"  
"Small but looks quite seaworthy," Rink responded. "I've seen worse full-size ships. I'm impressed."  
"Thanks," James replied and sat down on the edge of the docks. Rink sat down to his left.  
"So how's your journey gone so far?" Rink asked. "You must have sailed here from somewhere."  
"Not... not that well," James admitted. "Took longer than I had expected... ran out of food."  
"Seriously?" Rink asked while stifling a giggle. "Didn't anyone teach you to plan ahead?"  
"Well, I know that _now_ ," James replied. "And that's what I'm doing now. I'll be here until I know I can continue, which... is either until I learn to... or find..."  
"Sounds rough," Rink said before James turned to her with a snap.  
"Rink!" he exclaimed.  
"Since when are we on first na-"  
"Come with me!"  
"Eh?" Rink said before falling silent and blinking a few times, as if to ascertain that she had actually heard him correctly. " _Excuse_ me?"  
"Come with me," James repeated. "You have experience with traveling, don't you?"  
"Well, I... do, but... not with navigating, and... why would I go with you, for that matter?"  
"You said it yourself, didn't you?" James started. "You have everything here to the point that you're bored with it."  
"I... kinda said that, but..."  
"That's why you stopped hanging out with your fans after your shows, isn't it?" James asked.  
"You figured that much out, did you..."

What James had said was the truth of the matter. It was a sense of longing for something that had made Rink go off to be on her own after her shows, and she had often been drinking by the docks. She had been on the go for a while before she came to Avasine, stayed a while in one place before just taking some passenger ship to another place... but even that had started getting old for her. She would often remember a time when she had been traveling on a ship with a larger group, a group of friends... until it had ended very abruptly. Traveling on her own terms, with friends... maybe it was the change of pace she needed.

"Maybe you're right, mister Conrad," Rink said and traced the right arm the coat hanging over her shoulders with her finger.  
"I didn't-"  
"See this coat?" Rink asked and held up the arm.  
"What about it?" James asked in response.  
"It used to belong to someone I once traveled with," Rink said. "Someone I looked up to."  
"I thought it looked too big for you," James said.  
"That's why I just wear it like this," Rink said and raised her arms to spread the sides further. "You remind me of him."  
"So does that mean-"  
"You're driven," Rink said. "I like that."  
"So, are you-"  
"I want to see more of that."  
"What do you mean?"  
"I want to see just _how_ strong your conviction is," Rink said. "That girl. Mirise."  
"What about her?" James asked.  
"If you can get her to join you, I'll consider it," Rink replied.  
"...what," James said in a slightly defeated tone. "You want me to... asking you was one thing, but..."  
"You think I'm easier than her?" Rink asked, obviously faking offense.  
"Well... you've been traveling around already, she's lived here all her life," James replied. "And she's the daughter of the mayor, so how am I..."  
"Maybe it's time for her to seek new horizons, then," Rink said. "Weren't you having dinner with her tonight?"  
"Yeah, but..."  
"With all the time it sounded like you've spent with her you have to have thought about it already," Rink said. "Think about it a little more, and I'm sure you'll come up with something," she continued and stood up.  
"Where are you-" James begun.  
"It was enjoyable to talk to you, mister Conrad," Rink said, interrupting him. "But the rest is up to you."  
"Right..." he replied before Rink left, leaving him sitting on the dockside. He sighed and looked at his boat. "So this is what I get. I try to get one of the city celebrities to join me, and she tells me to get another one to join me first. Is this even worth it? What do you think... sis?"  
 _Cassandra_ , naturally, didn't reply.

Exactly five hours, sixteen minutes and thirty-nine seconds later, James met up with Mirise outside of the hotel. He was nervous when she approached, but not enough to make her notice it.  
"Alright, are you ready for another one of Avasine's best?" she asked, cheerily.  
"Definitely," James replied. "Where are we going today?"  
"Giovanni's," Mirise said as she started walking with James in tow. "Best pizza in town."  
"Sounds good to me," James said. "So, uh, what did your dad say about earlier?"  
"Oh, it was nothing, really," Mirise replied. "Since nothing really happened, there wasn't that much to say. It was just the usual, be careful, let me know if they cause any more trouble, all that."  
"That's good," James said. "So, well, about your father..."  
"What about him?" Mirise asked.  
"Uh... Rink told me he's the mayor."  
"Yes, I... oh, wait, you didn't know that? I never told- oh, I'm so sorry!" Mirise exclaimed. "I'm so used to people knowing that, I thought you knew already!"  
"I... didn't, but... no harm done. I'm just glad you can still hang out with me."  
"Oh, that was never any issue," Mirise said. "It's not like my dad can tell me who to hang out with or not... well, he might try, but I don't listen. Parents, right?" she continued with a laugh.  
"Yeah, heh... parents."  
"What are your parents like?" Mirise asked.  
"Well, I... haven't seen them in a while," James said.  
"I thought you had just started your trip."  
"Yeah, but... something happened when I was eighteen, and... it's a long story," James replied. "If it's the same to you, I'd rather not talk about it right now."  
"Alright," Mirise said. "Sorry."  
"It's okay," James said. "So, this place we're going..."  
"It's one of Avasine's oldest establishments," Mirise explained. "I was just a baby then, but dad has told me that it started as just a food stand when Avasine was a small trading post, and as it grew, he stuck around and it became Avasine's first restaurant when people actually started living here."  
"A real piece of history, then," James noted.

As the locale in question was situated in the center of the town, it didn't take long for them to reach it. Then again, for someone who knew the city like Mirise did, nothing took very long to reach. It wasn't a big place - there were two tables on an outside patio, and another three tables inside. Mirise led James inside and they sat down at the sole free table on the inside. There didn't seem to be much staff, either - James only noted two people there who weren't guests. One of them came up to their table with a bottle of sparkling water and turned to Mirise.

"Hello there, Mirise!" he said. "What can I get you and your friend?"  
"Good evening, Gio," Mirise replied. "A special for two, please."  
"Excellent," he replied and disappeared back behind the counter, where the kitchen was in full view for the patrons.  
"That's it?" James asked. "No menu, no anything?"  
"You want the best, you have to know what to ask for," Mirise replied. "Trust me on this one."  
"Well, I guess you'd know..."

After thirty minutes of waiting (during which James at various points attempted to collect himself enough to ask Mirise the question but never managed to get it out) the man who had taken their order returned to their table and placed four bowls of different sauces on it, and then followed up with a rather large, round wooden plate, on which was placed a colourful creation of the same size, hot enough that some of the cheese was still sizzling. James looked at it in awe - the sheer number of things on it, the composition, how it seemed like every bite of this would reveal an entirely new flavour.

"Pretty nice, isn't it?" Mirise asked with a smile.  
"...I feel like I don't even want to cut into this thing," James noted. "So is there anything else I should know before I do anything?"  
"Not really. Just cut a slice wherever you want and add sauce if you want," Mirise explained as she had started helping herself to a piece. "You got salted olive oil, spicy marinara, gorgonzola sauce and truffle sauce."  
"If you say so," James said and proceeded to get a slice, drizzle some olive oil over it and bite into it. It didn't take long until he had finished the slice, and immediately went for another.  
"Told you it was good," Mirise said in between bites.

After finishing their meal and paying (2600 beli, a price which James found expensive but had to admit was worth it), they stepped out into the streets. Avasine's nightlife was in full swing, but after the meal they'd just had, James just wanted to go to bed. But there was still that one thing...

"I'll see you tomorrow, then," Mirise said and turned around. James looked at her, closed his eyes and swallowed.  
"Wait!" he said and exhaled. Mirise turned back to face him. "I want to... I want to ask you something."  
"...yes?"  
"You've been an excellent guide ever since I came here," James said. "I appreciate that... and I wonder if you would continue guiding me."  
"I can keep showing you around..."  
"I mean... the first day we met, you said something about knowing how the sea flows," James continued. "I've gotten the impression... you know something about that."  
"...yes," Mirise replied, starting to realize where this was going. "I have... certain knowledge, yes."  
"Come with me on my trip," James said. "Be my navigator."  
Mirise was silent for a while as she looked around herself, then back at James.  
"I can't give you an answer right now, mister James," she finally replied. "It's true that I've felt a... call from somewhere else, but... you're a good man, and I trust you. If I were to leave, I wouldn't mind if it was with you... but I can't just..."  
"I understand," James said.  
"I will give you an answer," Mirise said. "That's all I can promise you."  
"That's fine with me," James replied.  
"...see you tomorrow," Mirise said and disappeared down the street. James sighed, wondering if what had just happened was good or bad.

He returned to the hotel. There was no show today, so the bar/lobby was fairly empty. Rink had apparently decided to stay in today, as she was sitting at the bar, chatting with the bartender. James walked up to her, and she turned to look at him.  
"So, how'd it go?" she asked.  
"I... don't know," he replied with a sigh. "I asked, but... got no answer."  
"Hey, Sammy, get him a beer and put it on my tab," Rink said to the bartender and turned back to James. "The important part is that she didn't say no, right?"  
"Oh, I guess," James said as a glass filled with beer was placed in front of him. Rink ordered another one for herself, and the two of them drank mostly in silence until the sound of a signal from the front desk rang through the room, the distinct call of a snailphone.  
"Who's calling at this hour?" Sam said and walked over to the front desk, picking up the receiver. "Veranda Hotel, manager speaking. Oh, miss Lake! What's that? Yes, I do believe so, hold on..." Sam lowered the receiver and turned back towards Rink and James. "You're James Conrad, right?"  
"Huh? That's me, yes," James replied. "Why?"  
"Call for you," Sam said and pointed to the receiver he was holding. James walked up and had it handed to him.  
"Hello? Yeah, I got that it was you... you have? You what? He _what_? Tomorrow? I... okay. Bye," he ended the conversation and hung up. He returned to Rink, with a facial expression that could lead one to believe he had seen a ghost. "What have I done to deserve this? This is all your fault!"  
"Um... okay?" Rink said.  
"So that was Mirise..."  
"Yeah, I heard. Good news?"  
"Well, apparently she talked to her dad about what I had asked... and now he's invited me to his house tomorrow!" James half-screamed.  
"An invitation from the mayor?" Rink asked and raised her eyebrow. "Not bad."  
"This is all your fault, you know," James replied.  
"Hey, I didn't know-"  
"You did," James said and downed what was left of his beer in one gulp. "Thanks for the beer," was his final comment - not entirely without sarcasm - before he left the bar to go to his room.  
"Sooo..." Sam said, turning to Rink. "Want to tell me what that was all about? Why is the mayor interested in him and what does miss Lake have to do with all of this?"  
"Ah, yeah, guess I should have mentioned it before," Rink replied. "I might be quitting soon."  
"That's a shame," Sam said. "And he's got something to do with it? There's nothing I can do to make you stay? You've been the best entertainment this hotel has ever had, you know."  
"You've been nothing but helpful to me, and I've enjoyed it here..." Rink started. "But no, it's all for personal reasons. I'm starting to get a bit bored, so I figured traveling might help..."  
"And you're going with him?"  
"Well, he asked me to come with him... I wanted to see how convincing he could be, so I told him that I'd consider it if he could get Mirise to come with him as well. They've been hanging out the last few days."  
"Hah!" Sam exclaimed with a laugh. "You're a cruel one, you know that?"  
"Maybe so," Rink said with a devious smile.  
"So... when do you leave?"  
"Well, I don't know if I am yet," Rink answered. "If I am, I'll keep playing my shows until I leave... aren't I coming up on number two hundred soon? Been like half a year since the hundredth."  
"I think so," Sam said. "But I'll have to check the books."  
"Oh, well, get me another," Rink said and pointed to her empty glass.  
"Are you sure?" Sam asked.  
"Eh, I'm not even slurring yet," Rink replied with a chuckle.  
"If you say so." Sam refilled her glass, and Rink resumed her drinking. A couple of pints later, what once had been regular banter between the two of them had degenerated into Rink's insistences she hadn't hit her limit yet barely even sounding like actual words, and it wasn't until Sam turned off the lights that meant the bar was closed that she dragged herself back to her room. Luckily she didn't have to climb any stairs to reach it - it was on the ground floor, just past Sam's office, and had always been meant as a staff room.

It was a pretty small room, really only consisting of a bedroom and a bathroom. The only furnishings were a bed, a writing desk with a chair and a storage chest. Rink didn't need more - she had never been much for luxury. Getting to live in the room for free was part of her salary, anyway.

She removed her coat and managed to hang it on a hook on the wall. She let her hair out of the ponytail she had had it tied up in, changed into a nightgown and laid down on the bed. She fell into a drunken slumber almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Up in his room, James was still lying awake in his bed, trying to figure out how he'd gotten into this mess, if it was worth it, and more than anything, if it was too late for him to back out of the whole thing.


	6. Theodore Lake, mayor of Avasine

"Is it too late for me to back out of this whole thing?" James asked Mirise as she was leading the way towards the mayor's residence. For the occasion, he had dressed up a bit more than he usually did - which mostly meant adding a black tie to his usual attire, though he had also shaved and combed his hair, something he usually eschewed.  
"It'll be fine," Mirise insisted to try to make him calm down. "Dad's not dangerous."  
"Still, it's always scary when a girl takes you to meet her father," James explained and got a giggle as his only reply. "And this one's the mayor. I feel like I've already lost."  
"Don't worry," Mirise tried to reassure him. "Just be yourself. He'll see you're a good person."  
"Like that's going to convince me," James replied. "How do I even approach this? 'Hi, I'm James and I want to take your daughter away'? I don't think that's going to go over well."  
"I already explained it to him when we spoke yesterday," Mirise said. "He knows you've asked me to travel with you. He didn't actually say if I could go or not, just... he just wants to meet you."  
"Okay. Alright. Fine. I can do this," James said, mostly to himself. "Remember what you learned..."  
"What?"  
"Oh, uh, nothing."

Their journey wasn't a long one - out of the hotel, past the market square, through the city center and one more turn to the right. The mayor's residence was somewhat less exclusive-looking than James had expected, a two-story building literally across the street - or across the bridge, as the case may be - from the city hall. It was fairly modest in general, and didn't look much different from the buildings around it - just a plain white structure with some windows. The only notable extravagant detail was a small, golden cat statue to the left of the front door.

"Are you ready?" Mirise asked James as she walked up to the door.  
"No, but let's do it anyway," James replied.  
Mirise knocked on the door, and it wasn't long until the upper half of it opened, revealing a middle-aged woman, with long black hair, in a maid getup.  
"Hello, Iza," Mirise said.  
"Oh, lady Mirise," she replied and then looked at James. "And you must be the lady's guest. Welcome."  
"Thanks, ma'am," James said as the door was fully opened for them. The two of them entered, and James extended his hand towards the maid. "I'm James Conrad. Pleased to meet you."  
"Iza Cabell," she replied and accepted the handshake - firmly, James noted. "The master is expecting you, please follow me."  
"Lady?" James whispered to Mirise as they were guided upstairs.  
"Iza's pretty insistent on things being formal," Mirise replied.  
"Stern?"  
"When she needs to."  
"I can hear you," Iza said without turning around.  
"Sorry," Mirise said, almost reflexively.  
"No need to apologize," Iza replied. "But there is no need to whisper about me. Mind your manners, always."  
"Will do, ma'am," Mirise replied as they reached the second floor. Iza led them to a door, which she opened without knocking.  
"Master Theodore, the lady and her company have arrived," she said as James looked into the room. It seemed to be a study, with many bookshelves along the walls, and a writing desk in the center. Behind the desk sat a man who seemed to be in his late fifties, with short black hair and a thin moustache, dressed in a tuxedo. He looked up from the book he was reading and nodded.  
"Thank you, Iza," he said. "You may leave us."  
"Very good, sir," Iza replied and left the room, closing the door. As soon as she was out of sight, Theodore stood up and rushed over to Mirise, giving her a big hug.  
"Hello, Mirise!" he said with a laugh.  
"Hi, dad," Mirise replied.  
"And you must be James," he said as he let Mirise go and offered his hand.  
"James Conrad, sir," James replied as they shook hands. "I'm humbled to have been invited here today."  
Theodore laughed. "Theodore Lake. You can call me Theo, if you want."  
"Huh," James said.  
"Anything the matter?" Theodore replied.  
"Well, no, just..." James glanced towards the door.  
"I'm not quite as concerned with everything being correct and formal all the time as Iza," Theodore said. "She might be a bit imposing, but I wouldn't know what to do without her. She's been such a help, especially after Mirise moved out."  
"She taught me a lot while I was growing up," Mirise said. "She's been a bit like a mother to me..."  
"Oh..." James begun and looked at Theodore. "Pardon me for asking, but... is your wife no longer with us?"  
"I've never been married," Theodore replied.  
"So... what about your real mother?" James asked Mirise.  
"Did Mirise not tell you?" Theodore said before Mirise had had the time to reply.  
"I... guess I never did," Mirise said. "Theo is... not my real father. I don't know who my real parents are, but he's been taking care of me since I was a baby. He's the one who named me, too. So he'll always be my dad!"  
"I see," James replied. "At least you didn't get your personality from her."  
Mirise and Theodore both started laughing at the comment. "Imagine me being that formal all the time," Mirise said and put on as serious a face as she could. "Today we are going to visit one of Avasine's finest dining places, which has been here since the beginning."  
All three of them chuckled at Mirise's impression, before James spoke up. "Say, that reminds me... Mirise said Avasine used to just be a trading post, and you're the first mayor. How did this city come to be?"  
"Oh, yes," Theodore started. "I used to be a merchant here in West Blue. There were a few popular spots for traders and merchants to gather, and eventually a few more or less thought to be permanent structures were put up here. At first, it was just used as a trading post, then people started seeing some additional business opportunities. A food stand here, a carpentry shop there, offering accommodations for people who wanted a good night's rest before continuing the travel... more structures and bridges were put up, some people started living here, and before we knew it, it was becoming a real city, or at least a town at the time. So, there was a need for some organization of things... and that's something I helped out a lot with. Eventually, I believe it was about ten years ago, people believed someone should take even further charge of the city, and I was the popular choice for the position as mayor."  
"It's been growing pretty quick, then," James said.  
"From a trading post to the city in the middle of West Blue in the span of thirty years," Theodore replied. "It's been interesting."  
"And you've been here your whole life," James said in the direction of Mirise.  
"And now you want to take her away from here," Theodore said in a somewhat more serious tone than before.  
"With all due respect, sir, I only asked her if she wanted to be my navigator on my travels," James said. "I'm pretty new to this whole traveling thing, and I need any help I can get."  
"Mirise, why don't you go help Iza prepare the lunch," Theodore said. "I want to speak to James in private."  
"Sure thing," she replied and left the room.  
James swallowed. This was it, this was going to be the part where he got torn into by an angry father.  
"So," Theodore spoke, "mister Conrad."  
"Y... yes, sir?"  
"I understand you've been spending quite a bit of time with my daughter."  
"I've only been here a few days, sir," James explained. "She has been showing me around Avasine, and I'm very grateful for that."  
"I've heard you've been involved in some tussles, too... you're not getting her into trouble, are you?"  
"Not at all, sir. The first time I met her, she was being accosted by some thugs, so I helped her... well, knock them out. Then they found us again yesterday, but someone else intervened before there were any fighting. That's all."  
"And you are willing to protect her if it should be necessary?"  
"If the situation calls for it, but I assure you, your daughter is very capable of handling herself. She defeated a man twice her size without my help."  
"You wouldn't happen to have any other intentions towards her, now?"  
"Most certainly not, sir. She is quite beautiful, but all I want is someone who can guide me on my travels. I have come to understand that she knows much about the sea, even if she haven't been traveling before."  
"So it is," Theodore said and stroked his chin. "Ever since she was a child, she has taken much interest in reading maps and studying the weather... and..."  
"And what?" James asked.  
"Oh, nothing," Theodore replied. "Now, about yourself..."  
"What... what about me?"  
"Who are you, really? Where do you come from, and what is your goal with your travels?"  
"I was born and raised here in West Blue, on a large island in the northwest. I had a good upbringing, but... I lost my parents and my sister in..." James paused.  
"In what?" Theodore asked.  
"In... in an accident," James continued. "So I wanted to get away, see more of the world, and learn more about it. But I've come to the conclusion that it would be a bad idea to do it alone, so I wish to find companions. In truth, I don't have any end goal in mind."  
"And would it only be you and Mirise setting out?"  
"Well, to tell the truth... there is one more, a singer at a hotel here, and... she said that she might join me if Mirise does too. But even aside from that, from the first day I met Mirise, I considered the possibility of her coming with me. But I never brought it up, since I realized how much she loves this city."  
"She certainly does," Theodore said. "And more to the point... the city loves her. If you take her away, there might be those that will not view you favourably..."  
"Such as yourself?" James asked.  
"I would have... other reasons," Theodore replied. "Keep that in mind..."  
"I understand how well-liked she is here, and that's why I've hesitated," James said. "But... even if West Blue is a big sea... there's nothing that says it would be a one-way trip. I promise... I promise that if Mirise leaves here with me, I will one day bring her back."  
"Is that so..." Theodore said and fell silent. James noted that he had barely changed his facial expression throughout the entire conversation, whereas James himself had been doing his best to hide the fact that he was practically sweating bullets. If Theodore had noticed, he certainly hadn't showed it.  
"How has it been..." James begun.  
"Hm?"  
"How has it been being a father to Mirise on your own?"  
"I've had a lot of help," Theodore replied. "But... it changed my entire life, and was one of the reasons I felt I should settle down. The merchant's life is nothing for a little girl."  
"Was it dangerous?"  
"There were... incidents, yes," Theodore said. "But a merchant's ship is more of a target than a civilian one, I suppose... which reminds me, Mirise mentioned you had your own ship?"  
"Built her with my own two hands, sir," James replied. "She made the journey to here without any problems... I'll look her over before leaving, to ensure she's ready."  
"That's enough," Theodore said. James couldn't tell if it was good or bad. "The food should be ready by now."  
"Oh, uh, alright," James said and followed Theodore to the dining room, where Iza and Mirise had already set the table. After partaking of a lobster soup lunch, Theodore informed James he needed to have a talk with his daughter and she'd let him know the answer later, so James left on his own. Feeling he needed a drink, and that he should be somewhere where Mirise could find him, he went back to the hotel. He found Rink in the same spot as yesterday evening, and sat down next to her.

"Welcome back," she said to him and took a drink from a glass of something red. "How'd it go?"  
"You tell me," James replied and pointed at her glass. "Wine at this hour?"  
"Huh? Oh, nah, this is just grape juice," Rink answered. " _Someone_ doesn't let me drink much alcohol before a show," she said and nodded her head towards Sam.  
"Just not fond of the prospect of replacing that many glasses again," Sam commented.  
"Well, I need a drink, either way," James said and waved for Sam to come over. "So why are you in the bar now?"  
"Talking to Sammy, and waiting for you, obviously," Rink explained. "So, spill it. What happened? You weren't gone that long, really..."  
"Well... you've ever felt like - a beer, please - like you're being crushed by someone who's not even touching you?"  
"Not exactly, but I think I understand what you mean," Rink said. "Was it really that bad? I haven't met the mayor, but he's always seemed like a nice guy..."  
"It was less that he was the mayor and more that he was the father," James said as his beer was delivered and he started drinking.  
"That makes more sense," Rink said. "So did you get any answer?"  
"Not yet, no... I'm supposed to get it later, whatever that means. What about you?"  
"What _about_ me?"  
"If she says yes, will you-" James was interrupted by Rink putting up her hand towards him.  
"I'll answer that when I've heard her answer."  
"Are you actually trying to make my life more complicated, or is that just a coincidence?"  
"Who knows?"  
"I'm going to regret asking you to tag along, aren't I?"  
"Regret is a part of life."  
"Are you planning on ever giving me a straight answer?"  
"I don't have to."  
"Even so, would be nice if you did..."  
"I'll give you one when I have one," Rink said and emptied her glass. "Look, I get it, you want to know... but there's no point asking me when I don't know myself."  
"You don't think I'm annoying, do you?"  
"I like your character," Rink replied. "I told you before. You're honest. Sincere. I appreciate that."  
"And..."  
"If I thought you were annoying, I wouldn't even consider traveling with you," Rink stated. "You're the first person I've met in a long time that I've felt I could... well, follow."  
"But you don't know yet if you want to."  
"That's about the long and short of it, yes."

Their conversation mostly died out after that, so they resumed their drinking - James finishing up his beer, Rink moving on to a glass of water - in silence. James was still not sure what to make of Rink - he still wanted her to join him, but was hoping to learn more about her before they were to leave, if she ended up agreeing. If they were to travel together, she'd have to let him get to know her better, anyway. But right now... it was more about Mirise. James didn't actually have high hopes for that, but...

The signal from the snailphone interrupted James's thoughts, and even before Sam had answered it he had a suspicion that it was for him - but at the same time didn't know why she'd call rather than just come talk to him. Then he realized he never actually told her he'd be at the hotel, so...

Sam tapped his shoulder. "It's for you. It's miss Lake."  
"I figured," James replied and went to pick up the receiver. "Hi. Yeah, I just went back... now? By _Cassandra_. Alright, see you."  
"Better news this time?" Rink asked as James went back to the bar to pay for his beer.  
"Maybe... she wants to meet me at the docks right now," James replied.  
"Good luck, then."  
"You, uh, want to tag along?"  
"What? Nah, I have a show to get ready for. I need a shower."  
"Right. I'll be back to hear that, I hope."  
"See you later," Rink said as he started to leave. But after a few steps, he stopped.  
"That coat... that belonged to a former captain of yours, didn't it?" he asked Rink without turning around. Rink didn't reply at first, mainly pondering the meaning of what James had said.  
"You're an interesting man, mister Conrad," she finally chose as her reply, also without looking at him.

* * *

As James walked up to _Cassandra_ , he saw Mirise already sitting next to her.  
"Hi," he said as he sat down himself. "So, you wanted to talk..."  
"Yeah," she replied. "After you left, I spoke with dad."  
"And?"  
"Well, we had a talk, and he asked me..."

 _"So, Mirise... what do you really think about that James?"_  
 _"More than anything, I think he's a good person... he's someone who can be trusted."_  
 _"Yes, he's... certainly something. The boy's driven. I like that aspect of him."_  
 _"What did you two talk about?"_  
 _"Just... things about his travels."_  
 _"So, dad..."_  
 _"Yes?"_  
 _"Can I go with him?"_  
 _"Oh, Mirise... that was never for me to decide."_  
 _"What?"_  
 _"You're not a child anymore, Mirise... you're a grown woman. What you do with your life is your own choice. As much as I'd like to have you stay here, close to me... if you want to leave, I'm in no position to stop you."_  
 _"So why did you..."_  
 _"I wanted to know what kind of person he was. If it was someone that I could feel safe knowing you're with..."_  
 _"And if he hadn't been?"_  
 _"I still couldn't have stopped you, but we'd be having quite a different talk. I've known... I've known you'd want to leave some day. There's something out there for you to find... right?"_  
 _"I... I've had a feeling, yes... something's..."_  
 _"Something's calling for you."_  
 _"Do you... know anything about that?"_  
 _"I know it's something that's important for you to find out on your own."_

"...and that's about it. Well, the important parts, at least."  
"So none of that was actually... gah! Well, I hope it makes your dad feel better that he made me feel terrible for a while."  
"Really?" Mirise asked with a giggle. "But, anyway..."  
"So... you're actually coming with me?" James asked. "For real, no joke, seriously?"  
"I suppose I am," Mirise replied. "You wouldn't get far without me, anyway. I'm looking forwards to traveling with you, mister James."  
"Can you call me just James?"  
"Sure," Mirise said. "So... when are you... we... leaving?"  
"Well... it depends," James said. "I have to ask..."  
"Ask who?"  
"Well, uh, to be honest..."

So James explained how Rink had played into the whole sequence of events. How he had asked her first, how she had brought Mirise into it. Mirise just laughed in response.

"So she's the reason you asked me?"  
"Honestly, I considered asking you already that first night... but I never actually dared until she told me that if..."  
"Well, you can tell her the good news, then. She seems like an interesting person. It'll be fun to have more people to go with."  
"I don't know if 'fun' is the exact term I'd use given that it's her, but... interesting, definitely."  
"Well... shouldn't you go back and tell her, then?"  
"She said she had a show to get ready for... if I know her right, she'll pounce on me and ask me about this first chance she gets anyway. You want to come along and see it? Talk to her more?"  
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't," Mirise replied. "I promised dad I'd have dinner with him today."  
"Well then, give him my regards, and... my thanks," James said and stood up. Mirise followed suit.  
"I'll see you tomorrow, then," Mirise said, still turned towards the water.  
"Yeah..." James said before stretching his hand out towards Mirise. "For now, let me just welcome you as the navigator of _Cassandra_ for the upcoming journey."  
"It's my pleasure," Mirise said and shook it. As she let go, she jumped off the dock, taking James a bit by surprise.  
"Whoa," was all he managed to say before Mirise's head reappeared above the water line. "Why'd you..."  
"Oh, I'll swim home," Mirise said. "I love the sea, and swimming."  
"I can see that," James said. "Bye."  
Mirise said nothing more as she swam away, while James slowly strolled back towards the hotel. He deliberately took his time, taking some less direct paths, looking through shop windows and the like. As he finally walked through the doors of the Veranda Hotel, the lobby was filled with music - Rink's performance seemed to have started just recently. James took a seat at the back of the room, and prepared himself for the inevitable next part.


	7. The last performance

"Thank you all for coming to listen to me again today," Rink said from the stage as she finished her set. "I hope to see you again soon."  
Aside from going outside and grabbing some dinner from a food cart down the street, James had stayed for the whole show. He still hadn't been able to figure out how she could sing like that.  
"Also, as we have business to discuss, I wish to call one mister Conrad backstage," Rink continued. "Don't try to hide, I see you there in the back," was the last thing Rink said before leaving. James hadn't _quite_ been expecting to get called out in front of the entire audience, but got fewer sketchy looks than he thought he would as he made his way towards the backstage area - which really only was the corridor that held Sam's office, Rink's room and the stage entrance. There was no door, just a curtain separating it from the main lobby/bar area. Rink was standing next to the open door to her room when James approached her.  
"So..."  
"Come on in," Rink said and entered. James followed and inspected the place - as much as there were to inspect. At least it seemed Rink liked keeping things fairly tidy, aside from some clothes on the floor everything was pretty clean. "Have a seat," she said and pointed at her desk chair as she sat down on the bed.  
"So," James said again. "Was that really necessary?"  
"It seemed efficient."  
"Even then..."  
"Alright, you know why you're here," Rink said. "Tell me everything. Including your meeting with the mayor."  
"Is _that_ really necessary?" James asked.  
"You want me to consider coming with you or not?" Rink asked in response.  
"Oh, fine," James said. "So Mirise took me to her dad's house..."

So James told Rink the whole story, as detailed as he could recall. The house. Iza. How Theodore acted when Mirise was with them, and when she wasn't. Even the soup. How all his worries had been completely pointless given what Mirise had told him... and that Mirise was going to go with him.

"...so now I have a navigator. Should make it easier."  
"You continue to impress me, mister Conrad," Rink said with a nod. "You wanted a straight answer, and I'd say you deserve one. I'm in."  
"You mean it?" James asked.  
"I very much do," Rink replied. "To tell you the truth, I've been considering it since you asked me the first time. You've shown me that you have a lot of heart, and a lot of drive... I appreciate that. I told you that. And I think a change of scenery is good for me."  
"That's great," James said. "Welcome aboard," he added and stretched out his hand towards her. Rink raised her eyebrow, but accepted it anyway.  
"Thanks," she said as she let go.  
"Right, then... we should start preparing for the trip together tomorrow, and decide when we're going to-"  
"Nine days."  
"What?"  
"We leave in nine days from now."  
"That... works for me, should be enough time to get ready, but... we have to talk to Mirise too, and... why nine days?"  
"Eight days from now, I'll be doing a show - and it'll be my two hundredth show here," Rink explained. "So I thought I'd make that my last one, and leave the following day."  
"As long as Mirise agrees to that, fine with me," James replied. "Was there anything else?"  
"Not really, no," Rink said. "I'll see you tomorrow."  
"Yeah," James said as he stood up and started to leave. "See you tomorrow."  
"You were right, by the way," Rink said as James put his hand on the door handle. "About the coat."  
"Oh," was the only reply she got.  
"But don't think I see you as some kind of replacement for him," Rink continued. James didn't reply as he left the room and went outside, feeling like he needed some air (and a drink) before going to bed.

* * *

The following day, Rink joined James and Mirise for their regular outing, to discuss the plans for the journey they had ahead of them. Mirise had no objections to the suggested departure date, and had already taken stock of her navigational supplies - that is to say, figured out what stuff she was missing to be able to do it while traveling and not just studying maps and weather patterns while in the same place. She also took it upon herself to start plotting their first course. As Rink insisted on taking care of everything that had to do with their food and water supply, James would concentrate on making sure that _Cassandra_ was in top shape for the trip and make sure she had everything they needed. Since the cabin had been built with a sleeping space for only one person, they'd also need to figure out some sleeping arrangement for Mirise and Rink, not that that seemed like a big problem.

Over the course of the following week, the trio spent most of their free time preparing for the trip. Of course, Rink was the only one with an actual job, and she kept playing her shows - with nobody but Sam actually knowing she was about to quit. Mirise cleaned out her apartment, moving most of her things to the boat, and lived with Theodore for the last three days before leaving. With all they had to do, James and Mirise no longer met up every day, but obviously their paths still crossed and they usually at least had lunch together, with Rink joining in on occasion. As they weren't trying to hide anything, a few rumours about how Mirise and Rink had been seen carrying things to the docks, and some even pointing out one specific boat, popped up but nothing big was ever made of it, and no one ever asked either of the two about it.

And so came the day before they were set to leave...

* * *

Sam knocked on Rink's door. "You ready yet?" he asked.  
"Coming," came the reply. "This has to be just right."  
"It better be, the bar is packed with your fans," Sam said.  
"Alright. This'll do." Rink exited her room and made her way together with Sam towards the stage entrance, where Ricky was already waiting. Sam was the first to step out on the stage and turned towards the crowd.  
"Ladies and gentlemen, it has been wonderful to have your patronage over this latest year. I know many of you have come here only to listen to our unique entertainment."  
Applauses and cheers filled the room, and Sam waited for it to quiet down before he started speaking again.  
"Today will be special for two reasons. To start with, it will be Rink's two hundredth performance here."  
More applause and cheering.  
"But also, and more sadly, it will also be her last."  
Various chatter followed by booing.  
"She has decided that it's time to seek new horizons, and we're in no position to hinder her. I wish her all luck in her future endeavours, and I hope you all do the same."  
A mix if cheers and boos.  
"To thank all of you, she has promised that this will be one to remember. So, without further ado, let me present to you one last time - on piano, Ricky Saron, and singing for us, Avasine's magic voice, Rink!"  
Sam left the stage as Ricky and Rink entered, drawing thunderous applauses. Ricky sat down at the piano, and Rink took her position in the spotlight. She was dressed in a simple but still elegant dark red gown, rather than her usual attire.  
"Hello, everyone," she said to the audience. "Thank you all for coming to listen to my last show here. This time, we'll sing all through the night if you want, and any song you want to hear!"  
The crowd started cheering loudly as she started her performance with an entirely new song she had written specifically for this day. Accompanied by Ricky, she bellowed out what could best be described as a power ballad in an impossible harmony.

Further back in the room, on the other side of Rink's throng of fans, James and Mirise sat at a table, enjoying a dinner Sam had told them would be on the house. James was enjoying a steak accompanied by a mushroom salad and red wine sauce with a dark ale to drink, while Mirise had received a well prepared fish that seemed to shine in the colours of the rainbow with a colourful assortment of vegetables on the side, having a glass of white wine with it. Mirise usually didn't drink alcohol, but had made an exception for today.  
"Nice song," Mirise noted. "How does she do that?"  
James shrugged. "Beats me. I've asked, but she won't say anything about it."  
"We'll probably find out sooner or later."  
"Well, yeah, if we're going to travel together..." James trailed off and took a bite of his steak before continuing. "I guess we don't really know that much about each other."  
"I know you're both good people," Mirise said while sipping on her wine, "and that goes a long way."  
"Maybe so," James said and returned to eating.

They had the rest of their meal mostly in silence, and an hour later they were just listening to Rink's performance. At quarter past twelve Mirise reported that she was going home to sleep, and two hours later James retired to his room as well. Rink showed no signs of tiring, though she had had a few drinks and quick bites in between songs. The requests from the audience seemed to never end, and Rink seemed adamant to fulfill them all. The songs continued echoing both inside and outside the hotel, and didn't end until the sun started casting its first rays over Avasine.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Rink was still a bit hungover when she boarded _Cassandra_ at noon. She had woken up in her bed with vague memories of having had company for the night, a memory compounded by being rather, let's say, sporadically dressed. She usually didn't get this drunk, especially not while performing, but it had been a special occasion. As she had already moved most of her stuff over to _Cassandra_ , she only had a small bag left in her room. After collecting her last payment from Sammy, minus what was left on her unpaid tab, she left the Veranda Hotel through the front door. Despite all the attempts at providing a sense of closure for them with the performance of last night, many of her fans were waiting for her outside. She shook a lot of hands and signed several pictures before reaching the docks. It wasn't until she had actually gotten on board that her followers dispersed. James was already sitting on the deck, chewing on a sandwich.

"Good morning," James said in between bites.  
"'morning," came the reply. "How much did I even drink last night?"  
James shrugged. "No clue. You were still going when I went to sleep."  
"Oh, well... are we all ready to go?"  
" _Cassandra_ is ready, but we're still waiting for Mirise."  
"Huh. I thought I was late."  
"Well, we said noon. She should be here any minute."  
Sure enough, not even five minutes later, Mirise came into view. Not alone, though.  
"Looks like we're getting a dignified sendoff," Rink said.  
"Hm?"  
"Mayor's here."  
"Huh," James said as he himself noticed Mirise, accompanied by Theodore and Iza - the two of them carrying bags. James fell silent as they came within earshot.  
"...and remember, there's all kinds of people within the Marines, so don't be sure you can trust them," Theodore said, his head turned to his daughter.  
"I know, dad, you've said that four times since yesterday."  
"Just making sure you'll be careful."  
"I will! I have friends to watch out for me, too." Mirise stopped in front of the C _assandra_. "Rink, this is my father, Theodore Lake."  
"So you are the other one who is going to travel with my daughter? Good to meet you. Theodore," he said and stretched out his hand.  
"Rink Kazai," Rink said and shook it. "I've seen you before, but we've never met."  
"I know that James is a good man, and if you're going with him, I trust that you are a good person as well. Please, take good care of my daughter."  
"We will, sir," James said. "But she's plenty strong herself."  
"That may be, but I will never forgive myself for letting her leave if something bad happens to her."  
"Don't worry," Rink said. "I give you my word, for as much as it's worth."  
"Thank you," Theodore said. "Well then, let's get these on board..." Theodore and Iza handed the bags they had been carrying over to James and Rink.  
"Even more luggage?" Rink asked as she grabbed one of the bags.  
"Dad insisted," Mirise giggled and then turned to Theodore. "Well, we have to get going if we're going to catch the fortunate weather. I'll be fine, don't worry!" Mirise gave Theodore a hug and a kiss on the cheek before looking out over the horizon. "Alright. The weather's what I was counting on. Time to cast off!" She undid the mooring rope and jumped on board. Soon, James had gotten _Cassandra_ out into the open waters. Theodore and Iza waved as the boat increased its distance to Avasine, with Mirise waving back. Soon, they unfurled the sails, wind filling the sheets.

"Alright," Mirise said to James and Rink as _Cassandra_ started picking up speed. "There's still one decision left to make, and we have about ten minutes to do it if we're going to be as efficient as possible. What's going to be our first goal?"  
"I thought you had already figured that out," James replied.  
"Well... look here," Mirise said and took a map out of her pocket. She unfolded it and pointed at a spot in the center of it, with three drawn lines coming from it. "So, here's Avasine. With the streams, and the weather, there's three islands we can get to within three days - Doromu, Kurita or Topton. Any opinions?"  
"Not Topton," James immediately replied. "I came from there. Not going back."  
"Kurita or Doromu, then," Mirise responded. "What do you think, Rink? There hasn't been many traders coming to Avasine from Kurita recently, but there's a lot of exotic spices coming in from Doromu, if that makes any difference."  
"Hmm. I've not been to either, but from all I've heard, Doromu is not a very nice place. I say Kurita. James?"  
"No opinion one way or the other. Kurita sounds good."  
"Kurita is is, then," Mirise noted and circled the island on her map. "I'll take care of the rest."  
"At least we can make a decision," Rink said. "Now I think there's just one thing left to do," she said and stood up. James and Mirise just looked at each other as Rink disappeared into the cabin, soon returning holding a bottle of rum and three glasses.  
"Oh," James said with a shrug as Rink handed out glasses and filled them up. She raised her own.  
"To the journey," she said.  
"To Cassandra," James continued.  
"To new friends," Mirise added. They clinked their glasses together before downing their shots in one go.

 _Cassandra_ 's first real journey had begun.


	8. Suspicious minds

The trip to Kurita passed by without much incident. James took care of the steering, Mirise the navigating and Rink did most of their cooking. During periods of calm weather, Mirise was already making it a habit to swim alongside the boat for a little while. James spent most of his free time reading, and Rink was more often that not humming to herself or outright singing. Thanks to fortunate weather, they even arrived half a day earlier than Mirise had assumed, and so it was under the stars they parked _Cassandra_ in one of Kurita's docks. James was the first to jump onto ground and tie the ship to the mooring post, looking around to see if he could find someone to tell him what the rules were. As he looked around, a pair of people caught his eye - certainly not dock workers, but there was something about them. A man dressed in dark clothes, with a hat and a trenchcoat, and a long-haired woman who carried something, but James couldn't identify it since she was standing further into the shadows.

For a moment, James's eyes met the man's. They looked at each other for a second or so, before the man turned to the woman, said something and then both of them disappeared behind a corner. Something about it unsettled James, but he figured it wasn't worth thinking too much about. It didn't concern them, anyway, Kurita was just one the first of many stops on a journey.

"James?" Rink's voice came from the boat.  
"Hm? Oh, yeah," he said. "I don't see anyone to ask, I'll go check over there," he said and pointed to a building with light coming from the window.  
"Alright, we'll secure the boat," Rink said and made her way to the dock, followed by Mirise.  
"So, this is Kurita," Mirise said and looked around. "You know, since Avasine is man-made, this is the first real island I set foot on. That I can remember, anyway."  
"Well, there's always a first time," Rink replied as she made sure the ship was securely fastened.  
"How many islands have you been to, miss Rink?" Mirise asked.  
"Oh, wow, that's quite a question," Rink replied. "I've never left West Blue, but I've been around... if we only count settled islands, and only each island once... probably twenty or thirty or so. Even if I only spent a few hours on some."  
"That's a lot," Mirise said. "That ship you were on must have made a real journey."  
"Well, I guess," Rink replied.  
Shortly thereafter, James came back.  
"Okay, so there's no payment to dock here. They keep watch, but don't really guard the ships. And there's no Marine station here."  
"Thought I heard snoring from the ships around here," Rink said. "So, what do you think? Do we need to guard the ship?"  
"They said there's rarely any thefts, and it's not like we plan on being here that long," James said. "It'll probably be fine, but I think we should at least check back with the ship a few times daily, if we're all away from it."  
"It's probably for the best," Mirise said. "So, what now? Go to sleep?"  
"I'm not sleepy, honestly," James said. "Getting a bit hungry again, though... supper?"  
"Well, I'm not going to start cooking now," Rink said. "There should be somewhere to eat around here. I think I'd rather go for a drink, though."  
"I'm not that hungry, but I'll come along," Mirise said. "Do we think _Cassandra_ will be fine?"  
"To be perfectly honest," Rink said while looking around, "I don't think _Cassandra_ is at any risk here. No offense to her, but she's not one of the fancier ships around. It's not like we have a lot of valuables. And given how many people seem to be sleeping on the boats around here, any would-be thieves probably wouldn't go for it anyway."  
"Alright, then," James said with a shrug before the trio started walking into the actual town.

Kurita didn't have much in common with Avasine. Where Avasine had a lot of tall buildings, most of them in some shade of white, Kurita didn't seem to have much taller than two stories and they were all reddish-brown brick structures. At least it had some semblance of a nightlife. Rink broke off into a pub as James and Mirise continued into one of the few still open restaurants and sat down. James ordered a meatball sandwich while Mirise just got a glass of water, which was soon delivered.

"So," James said after a few bites, "what do you think of her?"  
"Hm?" Mirise replied.  
"I mean, Rink."  
"What about her?" Mirise asked.  
"I mean... she doesn't seem to want to tell us anything about herself," James continued. "You think she's hiding something?"  
"I don't know," Mirise replied. "But I trust her. We'll probably find out more about her, and it's not like you and I are revealing everything about ourselves yet either."  
"I guess," James said. "I guess I wouldn't have asked her to come with us if I didn't trust her too."  
"Plus, she has a lot more experience than us, if what she says about having been at sea is true."  
"I don't see why it wouldn't..." James said. "And with the food she's cooking, I'm glad she's with us."  
James looked around the restaurant for a bit. He sat facing the door, Mirise having her back towards it. There weren't a lot of customers at this hour. James figured most people out now would have rather followed Rink's example and hit up a bar instead.

A few moments later, a man dressed in a black coat and dark grey cap walked through the door. Someone James recognized. He lowered his head a bit and started half-whispering to Mirise.  
"Don't look now, but that guy who just came in..."  
Mirise tried to avoid looking over her shoulder. "What about him?"  
"I saw him when we arrived... something's weird about him," James continued.  
"So does that have anything to do with us?" Mirise asked in response.  
"Well, no... not really, I suppose, but..." James said.  
"But what?"  
"Oh, forget it," James replied. "Let's just finish up and go back."

James ate the rest of his sandwich before the two of them left the restaurant. Looking around, they saw a few handfuls of people walking around the streets. Most of them drunk, but some that seemed to belong to some sort of city guard. They decided to look around a little before returning to _Cassandra_ , and soon found themselves on a street lined with shops. Most of them closed for the day, but a few still had their lamps lit. A short distance in front of them, a door opened and someone walked out. James nudged Mirise.  
"There he is again!" James half-whispered.  
It was indeed the same black-clad man again. He looked in both directions, but not obviously taking any special notice of the two of them, before crossing the street in a half-run and disappearing through an alley.  
"Told you. He's shady," James said.  
"He does seem strange," Mirise replied.  
"Let's see what that place is," James said. They walked up to the door he had came out of. It seemed to be a small establishment, the only sign on the door reading 'Materials', and only a small window which mostly had various papers with things that James didn't recognize on them. He opened the door and walked into a fairly small room, which was additionally cramped by both sides being covered with shelves full of various bottles, boxes and bags. At the end of the room, a bald man with a small white beard and glasses sat at a desk.  
"Oh, welcome," he said. "Can I help you find something?"  
"Oh, uh, I was just wondering what you're selling here?" James asked. Mirise had started studying the items on the shelves.  
"Oh, I have many things," the shopkeeper said. "Paper and ink, glass bottles, chemicals, gunpowder... various trinkets."  
"I understand," James replied. "Do many people buy those?"  
"Not anymore, I'll admit," the shopkeeper answered. "But we still get a few customers. Now, anything you want?"  
"Not today, act-"  
"I'll take these," Mirise interrupted. She held up two clear bottles, one filled with a white liquid and the other with a dark red one, and walked up to the shopkeeper.  
"Very good," he replied. "That will be four hundred beli."  
Mirise opened her pouch and placed the money on the desk. The shopkeeper put her purchase in a small paper bag that he handed to her. "Thank you very much, sir," she said before the two of them left the shop.  
"So what'd you buy?" James asked.  
"White and red ink," Mirise replied.  
"What's that good for?"  
"I'm not sure yet, but I haven't seen ink in these colours before."  
"Anyway, now I'm sure something's up with that guy," James said. "Chemicals and gunpowder?"  
"And ink and paper and a lot of other things," Mirise countered.  
"True, but he clearly wasn't acting like he hadn't been up to something shady when he left. I don't know if he saw us, but given how fast he moved there was obviously someone he didn't want to be seen by... those town guards, perhaps?"  
Mirise nodded. "I think you're right," she said. "But I don't think there's any use following him now. We should get back to the boat before Rink wonders where we are."  
"Eh, she's probably not back herself yet."

James and Mirise headed back to _Cassandra_ , but Rink had indeed returned before them. She was sitting on the deck, looking out over the sea.  
"What took you so long? Where've you been?" she asked without even turning her head.  
"We looked around a bit," James said. "Didn't think you'd be back so soon."  
"Oh, I just had two beers," Rink replied and looked at them. "Found anything interesting?"  
"Well..." James began.  
"Ink," Mirise said.  
"Ink?" Rink asked with a puzzled expression on her face.  
"Ink!" Mirise exclaimed, taking the bottle of white ink out of her bag. "We found a store."  
"Oh, huh," Rink said. "White ink? What's that good for?"  
Mirise giggled at the repeat question and stepped onto the deck. "I don't know yet."  
James followed her and yawned. "Well, I think I'm going to turn in for the night."  
"Sounds good," Rink said and stood up. The three of them entered the cabin, and Rink closed the door after them.  
"Okay, now it's just us," she said. "I wonder... have you noticed anything... weird around here?"  
James and Mirise looked at each other.  
"Well, there's one thing we've seen," James said. "Why?"  
"Call it a hunch," Rink said. "I overheard a few things at the pub, and something about this place just rubs me the wrong way... but I'm not sure of anything, really. What's your findings?"  
"This one guy who acts strangely," James replied. "I saw him when we landed here, and then we've seen him twice more. He's hiding something, I'm sure of it."  
"Could have something to do with it," Rink said. "Well, we have to get some supplies for the next part of the trip, anyway. Maybe we can find something out tomorrow. If it's nothing, then it's nothing. But I have a feeling that there's something going on here..."  
"I'm all for looking around," James replied. "What about you, Mirise?"  
"Sure, why not?" she answered. "Some mystery solving could be fun, but maybe we shouldn't meddle too much in other people's affairs."  
"Agreed," Rink said. "We'll take what we can find. After we've had some sleep."


	9. We fight together

Early the next day, after partaking of breakfast from a nearby vendor, the three of them headed out to see what Kurita had to offer during the day. Rink had taken inventory of their food stock and made a list of what they had to get before continuing their travels, and as James and Mirise didn't have anything better to do, had enlisted them to carry things as she scoured the local markets - and keep a lookout for anything weird.

Kurita's market district was markedly different from Avasine, in that it was a lot more structured. Whereas Avasine had all sorts of things spread out all over the city, the shops of Kurita seemed more clustered. There was one place to go if you was looking for produce, another place for meat, yet another for drinks. Kurita, quite naturally, also had a lower concentration of people than Avasine. The stands that were open at this time appeared to be almost exclusively dealing in food, so Rink made her way to one of the vegetable stands and started looking over the wares.  
"Good morning, ma'am," the shopkeeper said.  
"'morning," Rink replied. "Let's see... I'll have two cabbages, four leeks, and a kilo of potatoes."  
"Certainly, ma'am," the shopkeeper answered as he started collecting what Rink had asked for into a bag. "That'll be 1600 beli."  
"1600?" Rink said in a surprised tone. "That's insane. I'll give you 900."  
"It's what it costs, ma'am. But you seem to be new here, so to show my good-will, I'll make it 1450."  
"This shouldn't be a beli above 1000, and even that's a stretch. But fine, I can go to 1100."  
"If that's how you think it goes here, you won't leave with much. Most of the shops around here aren't as nice as me. 1300, and that's final."  
"Fine," Rink grumbled and handed over the money. She was given the bag and immediately held it out towards James. "Here, carry this."  
"Sure," James said and grabbed it. "So what was..."  
"And he wanted 1600 beli for that! It better be damn good."  
James shrugged as they continued their shopping.

Two hours later, they had left their purchases with _Cassandra_ and were sitting down at a café. Mirise was eating a small pastry, Rink only had a cup of tea and James was working on a bowl of thick tomato soup with bread.  
"How can you be hungry enough to eat something like that already when we had breakfast like... two hours ago?" Rink asked James. "And you wanted to eat yesterday night when we arrived as well, even though it wasn't long ago we had had dinner. Do you always eat this much?"  
"You DID have me carry all the heavy things," James replied. "That makes a guy hungry."  
"Among other things," Mirise giggled.  
"Any story about that?" Rink asked while sipping on her tea.  
"Well, that first time I met James, when he helped me beat up these two guys-"  
"They were accosting her," James interrupted.  
"Either way, after that, he said fighting made him hungry."  
"I have a fast metabolism, okay?" James said. Rink and Mirise laughed.  
"Anyway," Rink said, "I assume you haven't seen anything odd?"  
"We were following you all morning, but not really," James replied. "You?"  
"Only odd thing I've noticed is how expensive everything is around here," Rink replied. "Like, that fish? That shouldn't even have been half that."  
"Well, it's not as much of a trading spot as Avasine," Mirise said, having long finished her snack.  
"It's not just more expensive than Avasine," Rink answered. "I don't think I've ever seen basic goods at the prices they're asking for here. And whenever I asked why, they avoided the question." She finished her tea in one last swig.  
"You think it has something to do with... whatever's going on," James said, "if there actually is anything going on?"  
"I don't know," Rink said. "I don't think a bad economy would be enough to feel like that. It's not like we're hurting for money, I still have a lot left from my salary and you said you had a lot of traveling money, but even so. The supply is mostly restocked, at least. With this we'll last a week, easily, but I still have some more things to get."  
"Speaking of which," James said as he finished up his soup, "how long are we planning on staying here, and where are we going next?"  
"I'm ready to leave, honestly," Rink said. "This island doesn't seem to have much to offer beyond this city, but I'm also not in any rush."  
"Let's give it another day or two," Mirise said. "I need to figure out what the best routes away from here are. Avasine's closer than any other island, so it'll be a longer trip this time."  
"So, any plans for the rest of the day?" James asked.  
"I still have some things to buy, but I'll handle that myself," Rink said. "You can do what you want."  
"Guess I'll check out the town, then," James said and turned to Mirise. "What about you?"  
"Oh, I have some ideas," she replied.  
"You need any money?" Rink asked.  
"Don't worry about me," Mirise answered. "I found dad had given me even more travel money than he said he'd done."  
"He really does care about you," James said.  
"Yeah..."  
"Must've been a good mayor to keep a place such as Avasine under control too," Rink said. "Never heard anyone complain about him."  
"He did a good job," Mirise said.  
"By the way, I've been meaning to ask..." James started.  
"What?" Mirise said.  
"Not you, I mean Rink," he explained.  
"Yes?" Rink said.  
"What's the story with that eyepatch?" he asked and pointed towards her face with his spoon. "You never take it off."  
"It's just an eyepatch," Rink said. "I lost that eye, about... ten years ago? Something like that. I used to have to keep it covered to keep dirt out of the... well, the remains, and I've kept it on since most people don't really enjoy seeing the kind of stuff that's underneath."  
"So how'd it happen?" James asked.  
"It's... not a very pleasant story," Rink said as she drank the last of her tea. "I'd rather not go into that now."  
"Alright."  
"Well, then," Rink said and stood up, putting a few coins on the table. "That should cover my tea. I guess we'll just split up, I'll probably leave some things with _Cassandra_ and then come back when it's time to sleep, so I'll see you there."  
"Sounds good," Mirise said and rose as well after adding her part to the pile of coins. "See you tonight."  
Rink and Mirise left the table, going their separate ways, leaving James to actually do the payment.

The following hours weren't particularly eventful. Mirise first sought out the local library, reading up on the weather and streams around Kurita. Rink patronized a few local bars, primarily to try to get some clue about if there really was anything going on, getting a few drinks in as well but making sure to stay functional. James mostly walked around town, visiting a variety of shops and picking up a few trinkets, including a sheath for the dagger he'd picked up that first day in Avasine so he could carry it on his belt. He was keeping a lookout for the man he'd seen yesterday, but had no luck.

The sun had started setting when Mirise started making her way back towards the docks, carrying two books. Not being entirely familiar with the layout of the town, she made her way to the town square first, where she spotted James sitting on a bench with a bottle of beer in his hand.  
"Hey!" she exclaimed and walked over to him.  
"Oh, Mirise," James said. "How's things?"  
"Can't complain," she replied.  
"Done anything interesting?" James asked and took a drink from the bottle.  
"Mostly reading," she answered and held up the books. "Found some books with old sea charts. You?"  
"Looked around, trying to find that guy again," he replied. "No luck yet, but maybe..."  
"Maybe what?" Mirise asked.  
"See there," James said and pointed towards a building. When Mirise looked at it, she recognized it as the place they had visited yesterday night. "Maybe he'll show up there today too."  
"Just because he was there yesterday, it doesn't really mean-" Mirise fell quiet. No sooner had the words escaped her mouth than she was proven wrong, for a figure that was unmistakably the person they - James, at least - was looking for entered the establishment.  
"See? SEE?" James said.  
"Now what?" Mirise asked.  
"We wait for him to come out and see where he goes," James responded.  
They didn't have to wait long - only a few minutes later, he came out through the door, carrying something under his arm. He looked around before starting to leave, down the same road James and Mirise had come when they found the place the day before.  
"He seems to be going to the docks... you think we should find Rink first?" Mirise asked.  
"No, we'll lose him. Come on!" James responded as they kept following the man, keeping enough of a distance to, they assumed, not be noticed. He soon entered an alley, and as they followed, saw him turning a corner into another one. Following after, they found themselves in a dead end. But even though the man had clearly gone in here, he was nowhere to be seen.  
"Wha-" James exclaimed. "Where did he go?"  
The sound of something landing on the ground was heard from behind them, and they both turned around to see the man they had followed now standing in the entrance of the alley.  
As this was the first time they were able to see him clearly, James studied his appearance. One of the first things he noticed was that he looked a lot less threatening now that they could see his face. He had short dark brown hair covered with a dark grey flat cap, and a stubble around his jaw. Underneath his coat, he was wearing a white shirt, and two straps forming an X ran across his torso.  
He looked at the two of them, as if sizing them up. "Alright, now you can't run anywhere," he said.  
"Run? We-" Mirise began.  
"You've been following me ever since you came here," the man said. "I don't know who you are, but I won't let you interfere!" He reached behind his back with his right hand and pulled out a short sword. James and Mirise looked at each other.  
"Even if you have a sword, you think you can take us on alone?" James said and nodded towards Mirise. "She's much stronger than she-"  
"I'm not alone," the man said. A moment later, an arrow came flying through the air, sailing diagonally in front of James's eyes and landing in front of Mirise's feet. She gave off a small shriek and dropped her books in surprise.  
"We've put too much into this," a woman's voice came from above them. James and Mirise soon found its source, standing on the roof to the right of James. She was holding a bow and had another arrow aimed at the duo. Mirise grabbed the arrow that was lying in front of her in her right hand, and positioned her left hand in front of her face.  
"So who do you want to deal with?" she asked James without looking at him.  
James heard not only her question, but also thought he heard the sound of water dripping coming from her. He glanced down, and saw that he was correct - water had started dripping from the ends of her hair, as if it was melting. Puzzled by this, he didn't reply.  
"None of that," the woman said as she let another arrow fly, causing them both to have to dodge. She then jumped down from the roof, holding onto a rope. Now that she was in a more lit up area, James and Mirise could see her better - she looked to be about as old as Mirise, with tanned skin, long, black hair with a single streak coloured dark red, and wearing some kind of ornament consisting of a red flower and blue feather over her left ear. She was wearing a dark grey coat similar to the man's, but shorter, ending slightly below the waist. Underneath it, she was wearing a dark red camisole and black, knee-length shorts. On her feet, she was wearing sandals, and there was a quiver of arrows hanging horizontally across her back, at waist level. She already had another arrow nocked in her somewhat unorthodox-looking bow. "We fight together."  
"Well then, two on two it is," James said and pulled his dagger. He cast another glance at Mirise, who appeared more concentrated than he had ever seen her before, yet still with a smile on her face. Only this time, rather than her usual cheerful smile, it seemed to be a bit more mischievous. This made him grin himself. They had wanted some excitement.

And that, it seems, was exactly what they had gotten.

 _To be continued in Volume 02: The Kurita incident_


	10. Stop

**_A word from the author_**

 _Well, here we are. It's been a modest first week for Pure Corruption, but already some watchers and/or favourites here and elsewhere. Thanks to everyone who's still reading, and feel free to give me any comments or feedback you might have._

 _Please enjoy the second volume of Pure Corruption, called "The Kurita incident"!_

* * *

The woman let her arrow fly. It was heading for Mirise, who made a quick jump backwards and flicked the fingers on her left hand upwards.

The puddle that had formed from the water that dripped from her hair suddenly gushed upwards, striking the arrow in flight and causing it to change course, no longer posing any danger to anyone.

James looked at her. "What was-" he started, but was interrupted as the dark-clad man made an assault towards him with his sword. He parried the strike with his dagger, but as the blades impacted, the man quickly pulled his sword back and went in for a quick stab. James stepped to the side, and the only damage done to either of them was a small gash in James's shirt. While the next few strikes they traded were ineffectual as well, James found himself getting pushed back, and soon he felt a wall behind him.

Mirise, meanwhile, was avoiding everything the woman was sending her way. She somehow moved the puddle of water around as if it was a part of herself, using it to both deflect arrows and to attack. The woman, meanwhile, was moving around at a swift pace, attacking from several angles while picking up arrows she had already fired to use them again. All the while Mirise's hair was still dripping, adding to the already decently-sized puddle she was controlling.

James's dagger and the man's sword were again locked against each other, and James had been forced to back up enough that he was now standing with his back towards the wall. Figuring he had to get away from it, he directed a kick towards one of the man's legs. He had avoided using kicks until now to not risk losing his balance, but with his current position, he didn't have many options left. The man swung his sword downwards, but James was the quicker to strike. The man stumbled backwards, giving James an opportunity to lunge at him and aim a punch towards his face, but only managed to hit the cap off of his head.  
"Rude."  
James started another assault in his direction, but before he had taken even one full step, the woman had placed herself between the two of them and fired an arrow towards James, who managed to strike it with his dagger as he dodged backwards.  
"Hey!" he exclaimed.  
"I told you," the woman replied. "We fight together."  
"Then so do we," Mirise said and lashed out with the water towards the duo. The man snatched up his cap while dashing out of the way, while the woman moved closer to James with another arrow at the ready.  
"You expect me to hit a lady?" James asked.  
"Who are you calling a lady?" the woman replied and fired her arrow from short range, but James threw his hand out and managed to hit the bow, causing the arrow to go wide.

Mirise, meanwhile, was attempting to strike the man with gushes of water. But every time she tried, the man would hit them with his sword, making the water lose shape for long enough that the attack was ineffective, and thus he was starting to close the distance to her. Now Mirise was the one being pushed back, and before she had the time to counter, he took a long stride towards her and made an overhead slash. She attempted to block with the arrow she was holding, and while not enough to completely block the strike, managed to deflect it enough that she could get out of the way by ducking and doing a small roll, dropping the arrow in the process. She looked around, trying to find if there was something around here she could use - and realized there still was, something that all of them had been ignoring. Taking a few quick steps backwards, she stared at the man intensely, but stood still. She didn't even attack with her water. She just waited.

The woman had increased the distance between herself and James, but she wasn't attacking with the ferocity she had been doing when she was targeting Mirise. She and James were circling each other, each trying to find an opening. She wouldn't be able to recollect the arrows she had fired as easily from this position, and she didn't have all too many left. Both of them threw the occasional glance over at Mirise and the man as well, as if to confirm that none of them were about to switch targets.

The man started running towards Mirise. She flicked her left hand upwards, and out of seemingly nowhere a book jumped up from the ground, carried by her water. She used her other hand to hit the book, sending it flying towards the man who swatted it away with his sword... only to get hit in the face by another book only a moment later, causing him to fall backwards. As he started sitting up, Mirise quickly started approaching him, her rising water following her.

"Markus!" the woman yelled out and moved to intercept, but James placed himself in front of her. "Get out of the way!" she demanded.  
"Make me!" James replied, pulling his hand back for a punch. That's when a yell was heard from the entrance of the alley.

" **STOP!** "

It wasn't a normal yell. It was loud in a strange way, and it even seemed to carry some physical force behind it. James stumbled backwards from what felt like a shock wave and fell on the ground. Mirise stopped moving, causing her water to stop and splash down around her. The man and the woman halted their attacks as well, and all of them looked towards the source of the yell.

There, at the entrance of the alley, stood an out of breath Rink. James and Mirise realized that the voice had indeed been identifiable as her, even if it had been... odd.

"Rink!" Mirise shouted.  
"What are you two _doing_?" Rink said in an exasperated tone.  
The woman took a step towards Rink and aimed an arrow in her direction. "Who are you? Another one of Galt's thugs?"  
"Who the hell is Galt?" Rink asked. The woman lowered her bow slightly.  
"You... don't sound like you're lying..." she said, before taking aim again. "But that doesn't change the fact that these two were stalking Markus!"  
"Stalking?" James asked, having gotten up on his feet again. "Well... I guess we were, but..."  
"And who the hell is Markus?" Rink asked.  
"That would be me," the man who was still sitting on the ground said. "If you don't know... maybe you don't have anything to do with this after all..."  
"So how about you tell me just what is going on here?" Rink asked.  
"We... followed this guy, and then they cornered us..." James explained.  
"And it didn't occur to _any_ of you to stop and ask why you were fighting?" Rink asked.  
Mirise and James looked at each other and didn't say anything.  
"You two..." Rink sighed, putting her hand over her face before turning around. "Wait... someone's coming."  
"The town guard," the man called Markus said and stood up.  
"Let's get out of here," the woman said. The two of them climbed up the rope the woman had used to descend from the roof, pulling it up after them. Rink, James and Mirise were thus left in the alley on their own, and not long thereafter, a group of four red-uniformed men carrying spears entered the alley. In front was one who seemed to be in charge, with a thick but short brown beard and moustache. He walked closer to the three of them.  
"What is going on here? We heard a scream!" he said.  
Rink turned to face them. "I am _so_ sorry, sir," she said. "My friend here had a little too much to drink, and got into an argument with this young lady. It got a little heated, that's all. So I had to break it up."  
"Hm..."  
"Isn't that right, James?" Rink asked and turned to face James with a scowl.  
"Y-yes, I'm sorry," he said.  
"Are you alright, miss?" the guard asked and looked at Mirise.  
"Yes, I just... he caused me to drop my books in a puddle of water, so I got a bit mad at him," Mirise answered. "But I'm fine now."  
"I'll take care of him, he just needs to sleep it off, I promise it won't happen again," Rink told the guard. "We just came here yesterday, we're so, so sorry."  
"Well, alright then," the guard replied. "And stay out of these alleys when the sun is down, you never know what kind of people are around."  
"Certainly, sir," Rink replied as the town guards left, before she turned to James and Mirise with an angry look on her face. "Just what the hell do the two of you think you're doing? We said we'd try to get some information, not get ourselves arrested or killed!"  
"We... that was the guy I had seen, we were just seeing where he was going..." James said.  
"Let's... let's just go back to _Cassandra_ ," Rink said. "Goddamnit, you two..."  
"Sorry," Mirise said. "We should have been more careful..."  
"At least nobody got hurt," Rink said. "What's those books?"  
"Well, they got pretty wet," Mirise said as she picked up the books she had dropped and looked at them, "but they might be salvageable."  
"That's good, at le-" Rink paused herself and looked around at the ground. "Wait, wet? Puddle? It hasn't been raining, how did..."  
Mirise sighed. "I'll explain when we get back to the boat."  
"I think you have something to explain as well," James said to Rink.  
"Okay, okay," Rink replied. "Let's go back before we get into any more trouble."

The short return trip to _Cassandra_ was executed in silence. James and Mirise entered the cabin first, and Rink looked around to make sure they hadn't been followed before she closed and locked the door.  
"Okay, first of all, I need a drink," Rink said and took a half-empty bottle of rum out of a cupboard. "You want any?"  
"I'll have a glass," James replied.  
"Nothing for me, thanks," Mirise said.  
Rink poured two glasses and put one in front of James before sitting down herself. "So let's take it from the top... why were you two fighting those guys?"  
"Well, we..." James started. "That guy in the coat was the guy I told you about yesterday."  
"Yeah, you mentioned that."  
"We saw him at the same restaurant, and he acted suspicious, so we wanted to see if he was up to something. We thought he didn't notice us..."  
"Well, he obviously did," Rink noted.  
"We followed him into that alley," Mirise continued, "and he got the drop on us and then that woman ambushed us as well."  
"So you just fought without actually knowing why," Rink said.  
"Yeah, they... they accused us of interfering," James said. "But I don't know with what."  
"At least that confirms that there IS something going on here," Rink said. "But I'm not sure it's worth digging any deeper into it, if this is what it'll lead to."  
"That said," James said to Rink, "what is your deal?"  
"My deal?" Rink asked.  
"That shout. That wasn't normal," James said. "Even if you've trained your voice as a singer... that was more than a scream. You did something."  
"So it is," Rink said with a smile. "And none of you suspected what it was until now? Haven't either of you heard of devil fruits?"  
"I... know OF them," James said.  
"Devil fruits..." Mirise said. "I've read about them, they give some... magic powers, but I didn't know what they were like..."  
"Well, that's the truth," Rink said. "I've eaten the Sound Fruit. I'm a sound devil."  
"That explains a lot," James said. "'Fractal harmonies', eh?"  
Rink laughed. "I still call that particular trick that. But I have control over my voice, I can make and hear - feel, really - sounds that humans aren't normally able to."  
"That has to be useful for a singer like you," Mirise said.  
"It is, but I was singing long before I ate the fruit," Rink said. "Now, I believe that you also had-"  
Rink stopped talking as a _thud_ was heard from the cabin door followed by a small rattle.  
"What was that?" she said as she turned towards the door.

The three of them stood up. Rink unlocked the door and slowly opened it, peeking outside. But she didn't see anyone in the vicinity, and couldn't hear anyone beyond the expected either. She opened the door further, and found that lying on the deck in front of the door was a blunted arrow with a rolled-up piece of paper tied around it. Rink picked it up and returned to the cabin, closing and locking the door behind her.  
"Well, well, well," she said while holding up the arrow for the others to see. "Looks like we got mail."  
She removed the paper from the arrow and unrolled it, reading what had been written on it out loud.

 _Wish to talk. Will explain. No fighting._  
 _Will be waiting in alley tomorrow at sunrise._  
 _\- Markus_

She looked up from the paper and smirked. "Okay... maybe it's worth digging a _little_ deeper."


	11. Grasping the opportunity

Markus and his female companion descended a set of stairs into a basement-like room. It was fairly spacious, but sparsely decorated - a desk filled with papers, a table with chairs, a workbench, two beds and a couple of crates. Markus hung his coat over the chair in front of the desk and sat down, while the woman hung hers along with her quiver on a hook next to the entrance before sitting down on one of the beds.

"Are you SURE this was a good idea?" she asked.  
"Yes, Muse, I'm sure," Markus said, pressing his thumb and forefinger to his forehead. "If they're willing to help..."  
"If they even show up," the woman called Muse replied. "Or the town guard might show up instead."  
"They're not Galt's, Muse," Markus said.  
"How are you so sure about that anyway?" Muse asked. "And what if they WERE targeting us?"  
"If they were, they wouldn't have just... stopped like that," Markus said. "Definitely not after we mentioned Galt... and that woman with the power didn't fight, or mention anything about us to the guards. She seemed the reasonable type."  
"And what if they were from-"  
"Then they would have been going after you, not me."

The duo had not left immediately after escaping the fight, but stayed on the other side of the wall and listened to Rink's conversation with the guards and after that her friends. Markus, realizing they most likely weren't their enemies and that they could be of good help if they wanted to cooperate, had written them a message and had Muse deliver it to their boat via her bow. But Muse was still skeptical.

"Both of them seemed pretty ready to kill us if they had gotten the opportunity," Muse, who had started walking around the room, said. "There's no telling what that girl was planning to do with that water... whatever that was."  
"You're one to talk," Markus replied. "You were pretty close to hitting with a lot of your arrows."  
"Still, I don't trust them," Muse said. "This is on you if it goes south."  
"I know, I know," Markus replied. "But you know as well as I do that right now, the two of us alone can't deal with Galt. They could be useful allies."  
"And you think they'll just show up and be all like 'sorry for yesterday, let's be friends now'?" Muse asked.  
"No, I don't," Markus replied. "We won't let our guard down, but we can't go there with weapons drawn, either."  
"Fine," Muse said. "But I'm still not convinced."  
"I don't trust them fully either," Markus said. "But we need any help we can get right now."  
"If you say so," Muse said and walked back to the bed. "Well, I'm going to sleep." She took off her sandals, shorts and camisole, put on a white t-shirt that was at least two sizes too big and laid down.  
"You do that, I'll... stay up a little longer," Markus said, lit a lamp on the desk and started going through some papers.  
"Just don't fall asleep at the desk again," Muse said before turning around and closing her eyes.

* * *

"So... your hair just... melts?" Rink asked with a confused expression.  
"Sort of," Mirise replied. To demonstrate, she was holding a plate next to her head and was collecting the water from her hair on it.  
"And... why can you..." Rink said.  
"I'm not sure myself," Mirise replied and put the plate on the table. It wasn't a whole lot of water, but Mirise flicked one of her fingers and it splashed upwards.  
"Do you control it like that, or..."  
"No, it's like... like it's an extra body part," Mirise replied and put her hands behind her back before making it splash again. "But I find it easier to focus and control it if I move my body along with it. Especially if there's much of it."  
"So how much water can you make?" Rink asked.  
"More than you'd think," Mirise replied and started to make the water in the plate swirl around. "It comes from my hair, but... I can make more water than I have hair."  
"So can all your hair do that?" Rink asked.  
"No," Mirise replied and held out some of her cyan fringe. "Only this part."  
"Well, that's certainly something I can say I've never seen the likes of before," Rink said. "Well, maybe some devil powers, but... and I guess it could explain why..." she continued.  
"Explain what?" Mirise asked.  
"Remember how I said she sounded weird?" Rink asked James.  
"Weird?" Mirise repeated.  
"Yeah," James replied with a nod. "What does that have to do with it?"  
"Well, like I said... I can feel sounds people don't know even exist, like the sound, or... echo of a body," Rink started explaining. "And every body has a certain sound. Human bodies sound one way, different animals another... bodies with devil fruit powers have a certain quality to them, but it also depends on the power."  
"So what's the sound of my body like?" Mirise asked.  
"It's... calmer," Rink said. "It resembles a human, but it's... different in certain ways. It's almost like..."  
"Like what?"  
"Like the ocean," Rink replied. "Like that's where you really belong..."  
"What, like she's a mermaid or something?" James asked.  
"Well, I don't know what mermaids sound like... certainly would like to hear one some day, but... that's all I can say. And I don't know what that means."  
"I... don't either," Mirise said, having reformed all of her hair. "I am me."  
"Well, nobody's asking you to be anything else," Rink replied and closed her eye. "Even if it makes me wonder about you... you're great as you are."  
Mirise smiled at the compliment. They were all silent for a while, before James spoke up.  
"So, to change the topic... are you really going to that thing tomorrow?" he asked and pointed to the letter and arrow lying on the table.  
"I was counting on that we all would," Rink replied. "Don't you want to find out what this is all about?"  
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" James asked. "What if they don't show up?"  
"Then that's not our problem," Rink replied.  
"What if it's some kind of trap?"  
"Doubtful, and even if it is, I'd hear it coming before it gets us. Literally."  
"I'll gladly go with you," Mirise said.  
"Besides, it's two against three, if they attack again. I have my sound powers, Mirise has her... hair-water... thingy, and from what I've heard and seen of you, you know a thing or two about handling yourself in a fight."  
"Out of necessity," James said and cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, okay, I'll do it."  
"We shouldn't go there expecting to fight, though... even if you made a terrible first impression, they seem willing to give us another chance."  
"At sunrise..." James said. "That should be, in something like..."  
"Six and a half hours, give or take," Mirise said. "We're not far from Avasine, it should be about the same."  
"Well, we should get rested, at least," Rink said. "I'll wake you up when it's time."  
"And how do you know you'll wake up in time?" James asked. "Don't tell me you can hear when the sun rises too."  
"Don't be absurd," Rink replied. "But there's other things to hear that happen when the sun rises, especially when you're in a place like this."  
"Doesn't that make sleeping hard for you?" James asked.  
"Well, not really," Rink said. "Usually I can filter things out, and usually I sleep where I can't hear it... but if I need it, I sleep with earplugs."  
"Do those even help?" James asked. "Didn't you say you could feel sounds, too?"  
"They help enough," Rink replied and started taking her shirt off. James quickly turned away, facing the wall, which made Rink giggle. "Still not used to that, are you."  
"Just tell me when the two of you are done."  
Mirise rolled out two mattresses, her and Rink's sleeping solution. Rink changed into her nightgown, whereas Mirise put on a long-sleeved but airy pajamas.  
"Alright, you can turn around now," Rink said, trying to stifle a laugh.  
James said nothing as he stripped down to his underpants and laid down in the hammock. "So, I was wondering..." he then started.  
"What?" Rink asked as she pulled a blanket over herself.  
"Those powers you two have... are there any drawbacks?" James asked. "I've learned that there's no such thing as a shortcut to strength."  
"I can't swim," Rink said. "Devils like me sink like a rock. We can't even struggle, our bodies pretty much lock up. So if I ever fall in or get thrown in the sea, I'm counting on miss master swimmer here," she said and nudged her head in Mirise's direction.  
"I'm sure I can handle that," she replied. "But for me... I've never found any real drawbacks to it. But I've never really used it for anything advanced, and it takes a while to get a good amount of it. Why?"  
"Just interested, I guess..." James said. "This stuff is still new to me, to be honest. The more I learn about the things that can go on in the world, the less surprises I'll hopefully have on this journey."  
"The world is big, mister Conrad," Rink said. "There's always new surprises out there. Who knows, we might be walking into one tomorrow..."

* * *

Markus was still sitting at his desk, now with an empty glass and a half-empty bottle of brandy next to him. His desk, which just half an hour earlier had been fairly neat, was now a mess of papers, maps and photos. A lot of the papers had previously written things that had been crossed over, like "draw out Galt - large fight", "wait until sleep", "get Atlas first" and "diversion - arrow through window". Currently, he was writing something that appeared to be a numbered list, but the numbers weren't necessarily in order and arrows indicated that several items were to be placed somewhere else, if at all. On the top of the page was "2 use the dogs", followed by "3 deal with the bodyguards" and "3 go through window". After that was "4 draw attention of Atlas", with an arrow drawn after it pointing to the space between item 2 and the first item 3. He kept writing, arranging and rearranging items, crossing some out, until he had reached the end of the page. The last line he had written only consisted of "18 run", and it was far from the 18th thing on the list. He put down his pen and held the paper up in front of himself.  
"This... this could work," he said to himself as he put it down again on top of the rest of the mess and let out a yawn. Muse was long since asleep, and if they were going to meet those other people - if they even showed up - tomorrow, he should get some sleep too. Without bothering to do more than take off his shoes and hat, he laid down on his back in the other bed in the room and looked up at the ceiling. He could never fall asleep right away, he always had to take some time to let his thoughts calm down or he'd never be able to get any rest. Especially after a day like today, when an opportunity had presented itself. Maybe, just maybe, there was finally going to be a solution to everything that was wrong with Kurita.


	12. The answer

Kurita was just waking up. The sun had started peeking over the horizon when James, Mirise and Rink left _Cassandra_ , heading towards the alley where they less than twelve hours earlier had been involved in a bit of an altercation. Now they were heading back - not only to the same place, but to meet the same people.  
"And you keep yourself in line," Rink said with her head turned to James. "If it gets ugly, we run. Nothing else."  
"With the three of us I'm pretty sure we could beat them," James said. "I mean, with your powers..."  
"You need to choose your battles," Rink replied. "Pick the wrong one, and suddenly you have a hundred people hunting your ass."  
"Okay, okay," James said. "But if I have to fight, I won't hold back."  
"Were you doing that yesterday?" Mirise added.  
"Not really, no," James replied. "I didn't think I was doing too badly."  
"You didn't, especially seeing as the other guy had a sword," Mirise said. "Do you have any training?"  
"Not exactly," James said. "I had to learn, essentially. That's... been my life. If I hadn't met you, I would have had to learn navigation."  
"Maybe that would have done you some good," Rink said.  
"Don't get me wrong, I like learning," James said. "But I'm still glad I met Mirise. And you, for that matter."  
"I wouldn't get too attached," Rink said. "That... that just leads to..." she trailed off without finishing her sentence.  
"What?" James asked.  
"All I'm saying is, we don't know for how long we'll stick together, so you might just be putting it off," Rink said with a tone indicating she didn't want to continue the conversation. James took the hint and didn't say anything else, and the silence continued until they approached the alley that was their goal.  
"Right, let's be careful," Mirise said as they rounded the corner, being met by nothing at all. James looked around and took a few steps into the alley.  
"Well, that's just great," he said. "So much for that."  
"Maybe they're late?" Mirise offered and followed him, looking around. There were no evidence of their confrontation from the night before - not even any wet spots on the ground.  
"No..." Rink stated as she entered the alley herself. "They're here."  
"I should have known there was no hiding from you," a now somewhat familiar voice spoke from behind them. "Not with your powers. Well done."

The duo they had encountered yesterday had entered the alley after them. Rink, James and Mirise turned to face them. None of them were holding their weapons, at any rate, though the woman was wearing her quiver.

"So you could tell I had a power, at least," Rink said. "Mister... Markus, was it?"  
"Markus Flint, yes," he replied.  
"Rink Kazai," Rink said.  
"James Conrad."  
"Mirise Lake."  
"And I'm Muse," the woman said.  
"Just 'Muse'?" Rink asked.  
"For now, yes," she replied.  
"Now," Rink said, "care to tell us why we're here?"  
"Very well," Markus said. "From our little... run-in yesterday, I could tell that your two friends were quite strong... and then there's you, a devil fruit user... I wish to ask if you would be willing to assist us in a little task."  
"Like what?" James asked.  
"I can't tell you too much right away... you're going to have to decide first. Either you walk away now, and we'll forget we ever met you, and you can finish whatever business you still have on this island..."  
"Or?"  
"Or you hear us out... and if you do that, you either elect to help us, or it would be best for you to leave Kurita immediately."  
"That sounds like it's more than a 'little task'," James said.  
"Make your choice... do you want to know more?"  
James, Rink and Mirise turned to face each other and started half-whispering.  
"You really think we should get involved with this?"  
"How bad can it be?"  
"We're kind of ready to leave anyway..."  
James turned back to the duo. "Come on, you'll have to give us some more information..."  
"All I can say right now is that what we're doing is for the good of Kurita," Markus replied. "To right some wrongs."  
"So do you need us to answer right now, or..."  
"You want to think if over some more," Markus said. "Let's do it like this, then," he said and picked up a notebook and a pen from his pocket.  
"Like what?" Rink asked. Markus didn't reply at first, but scribbled something on a page in the notebook before tearing it off and handing it to Rink. On closer inspection, it turned out to be a simple map, with one location clearly marked.  
"So the central square is here, and my clinic is if you follow this road," Markus said and pointed at the map. "Think it over... and then come find me."  
"Are all of these hoops really necessary? Can't you just tell us what it's about?" James asked.  
"Not now," Markus said. "To be honest, it... won't be safe. Keep that in mind... if you haven't shown up in an hour, I will assume you're not in."  
"Sounds fair," Rink said and handed the map over to Mirise. "See you later... or goodbye, depending on what we choose."  
"Yes... that's how it is," Markus said before turning around and leaving. Muse, who had said nothing during the conversation, cast a final glance at the trio, a look of disapproval on her face, before disappearing around the corner together with Markus.  
"I don't think that girl likes us," James said.  
"She certainly doesn't seem the trusting type," Rink commented. "But that Markus fellow seems reasonable."  
"So what now?" James asked.  
"Breakfast," Mirise replied. "And talking it over."  
"Sounds about right," Rink said.

They returned to _Cassandra_ to eat after picking up sandwiches from a bakery on the way, as they figured it would be best to have privacy while talking about the matter at hand. Mirise prepared a cup of tea for each of them, and put the map on the middle of the table in the cabin before sitting down.  
"Alright, so what do we think?" she asked. "He said it was for the good of the island."  
"For whatever that is worth," James said. "How do we know he told the truth?"  
"I think we can trust him," Rink said. "He said we should find him at his clinic, so he's clearly some kind of doctor."  
"And that makes you trust him?" James asked.  
"He said he wanted to right some wrongs... it really sounded to me like he had the best interests of the island at heart, rather than some other agenda. And doctors... they tend to be like that. They want to help."  
"He said it would probably be dangerous, too..." James said.  
"Yeah, but what are you expecting?" Rink asked. "That everything you do on this trip would be entirely safe? That's not how the world works, especially not these days."  
"I get that, but I don't know," James said.  
"Well, I'm all for getting the details about this," Rink said and turned to Mirise. "We could leave right away if it gets to that, right?"  
"Yes, but I haven't plotted any course yet," Mirise said. "But I can do that when we're out to sea."  
"See, we can just do that. In the worst case, we'll just go back to Avasine and try another route."  
"Oh, alright," James said. "We'll listen to what they want to do."  
"And if it seems too much..." Mirise started.  
"We'll bail," Rink finished before downing the last of her sandwich. "So we're doing this, then."  
"Seems like it," James said. "So, do we go right away?"  
"Almost," Rink said as she walked over to where they kept their luggage and started digging around in one of her bags. She eventually pulled out a smaller sack, looked inside it and then slung it over her shoulder. "Alright, now I'm ready."  
"What's that?" James asked.  
"Something I haven't used since before I reached Avasine," Rink replied. "It might come in handy."  
"Let's go, then," Mirise said and emptied her teacup before standing up. James attached his dagger to his belt, but let his shirt hang down over it so it wouldn't be too apparent he was walking around with a weapon. They left the boat and started making their way into the city, with Mirise leading the way.

It didn't take her long to find the location - the map, while simple, was clear enough. The place didn't look like much from the outside - it was part of a larger building, and only a small sign on the door identified it as a doctor's clinic. Mirise knocked on the door.  
"Come in," a muffled voice spoke from within. Mirise opened the door, and they all entered.  
It wasn't very big on the inside either - they came into a room that seemed like it was a waiting area, with three chairs, a small table, and a desk next to an open door into the next room. There were no people in the room currently, but soon Markus walked through the door, looking down at a notebook. He was currently wearing a white doctor's coat, and wasn't wearing his cap - but had glasses on.  
"Do you have an- oh, it's you," he said as he saw who the new visitors were. "Come in, quick," he continued as he pointed them into the other room, locking the front door and closing the door into the other room after him. The other room was larger, with a bed and a few benches with cupboards along the walls. Various equipment was lying on top of them. In the corner, there was another doorway.  
"No patients today?" Mirise asked.  
"Don't get a lot, really," Markus replied. "It's only occasionally I actually have someone come here, I mostly do house visits... but not too many of those either. There's a hospital on the south side of town, but I prefer doing this on my own. Plus..."  
"Makes it easier for you to disappear," Rink noted.  
"Well... I suppose," Markus replied as he took off his glasses and placed them on the bench. "But since you're here, I assume you want to hear more..."  
"So we decided," James said. "But nothing's final yet."  
"I understand that," Markus said and put his doctor's coat on the bed. "Follow me." He opened the door in the room, revealing a stairway. He led the way as the four of them descended into the basement, which also was Markus and Muse's living space. Muse was sitting down at the desk, with a bunch of arrows she seemed to be working on in front of her. She looked up as they entered.  
"So you came," she said. "I almost thought you wouldn't dare."  
"Be nice, Muse," Markus said.  
"If we're going to help you, you better drop the attitude, missy," James said with a hint of irritation.  
"Be nice, James," Rink said.  
"So, um," Mirise spoke up, "what is this all about, now?"  
"Alright," Markus said. "You came, so you deserve more of the story."  
"It's about time," James said.  
"Me and Muse... as I said, what we're doing is for the good of Kurita... say, have you noticed anything... let's say, strange about this island?"  
"A little," Rink said. "Something about it bothers me, but I don't know what... and everything's expensive. That got something to do with it?"  
"It's part of it, yes," Markus said. "The trading fees are very high here."  
"And... that's what you're fighting?" James asked. "Doesn't seem very serious to me..."  
"It's just one example," Markus continued. "Any money you earn, any money you spend, there's taxes and fees on everything. Every time money goes through the system, some of it is siphoned off... and it goes right into the pockets of Galt. Kurita's bleeding."  
"And nobody's complaining about this?" Rink asked.  
"Who are they going to complain to? Kurita's completely under their control. It's not like the Marines are going to step in. The citizens wouldn't dare. If Kurita is ever going to be able to recover... Galt needs to be dealt with."  
"So, before we go any further... who is this 'Galt' you keep talking about?" James asked.  
"What do you think?" Muse asked. "He's the core of this whole thing. He's the one who collects the taxes, he's the one controlling the town guard."  
"You... don't mean..." Mirise started.  
"It's what you think," Muse answered before Mirise had finished asking her question. "He's the mayor of Kurita... and our goal is to take him down."


	13. Galt

"The mayor," Rink said while staring at Markus. You want to take out the mayor."  
"...yes," Markus replied after a moment of silence. "It's... the only way to end this."  
"Isn't that kind of an extreme measure?" James asked.  
"Are you from here, mister Flint?" Rink asked.  
"No, I'm from North Blue... but... I have a personal stake in it too," Markus said. "Galt... was responsible for the death of my father."  
"And it all starts making sense," Rink said and turned to Muse. "So what's your motivation for being a part of this?"  
"I'm helping Markus," Muse said. "I owe him everything."  
"Okay, so," James said, "is this mayor person strong or something?"  
"Not him, no... he's old, a retired Marine commodore..."  
"So why do you need our help?" James asked. "Can't you deal with an old man on your own?"  
"On his own, he would be no problem," Markus said. "But there's more people in play, and they're more than we can handle."  
"Now that you mention it, you did say that Kurita is under 'their' control..." Rink noted.  
"So at the top of it all, there's Galt..." Markus explained. "He rarely leaves his mansion, where he's got two bodyguards and a his guard dogs, making it hard to approach. And after that, there's the town guard... especially the guard chief, who's our biggest problem. He's at the beck and call of Galt, and can bring the entire guard with him."  
"There's too many for us to deal with at once," Muse said.  
"The plan I've been believing the most in is to divide and conquer, but... with only two of us, we can't quite divide them enough that we'd also be able to conquer. But with you..."  
"We haven't said that we're in yet, but keep talking," Rink said. "You mentioned a guard chief."  
"Galt's most important piece," Markus said. "They call him Atlas. A former pirate captain that he recruited as muscle... the rest of the town guard consists of some of Atlas's and Galt's old crews, and anyone on Kurita who could fight. And those that aren't in Galt's pocket are too scared of Atlas to do anything..."  
"So what's he like?" James asked.  
"He's the strongest on the island," Markus said. "You must have seen that the town guards carry spears, but he uses an anchor for a weapon. Myself and Muse could maybe deal with him on our own, but probably not with the rest of the guard backing him up, and even if we managed to get out of it alive, there's no way we'd be able to reach Galt afterwards."  
"And you think we can help you with that?" Mirise asked.  
"We need to keep every player busy at the same time but in different places," Markus said. "We need to get Atlas alone, while the town guard is kept busy, not allow Galt to call on his bodyguards... and that involves being able to enter the mansion. It's... kind of a tall order."  
"Well, you've made your point," Rink said. "I see why you need help, and I think it's time for us to make the call. James, Mirise..."  
"Yeah... I don't know," James said. "It seems a little... much. I do want to help, but I'm not sure this is a good idea."  
"I think we should do it," Rink replied. "I'm no stranger to taking a few risks, and this island seems like it needs a fresh start. Mirise?"  
"A mayor..." Mirise started before taking a deep breath. "A mayor is supposed to take care of the people living in his city! Not exploit them. I can't stand by and do nothing on this one. I'm in."  
"Two against one," Rink said. "So..."  
"Oh, alright, I'll do it," James said. "There's no risk that traveling with the two of you will ever get boring, at least."  
"Well then, mister Flint, looks like you've got yourself three more allies," Rink announced. "For now."  
"Thank you," Markus replied. "We... cannot offer much in return..."  
"Well, there's one thing you can do..." Rink said. James and Mirise looked at her, puzzled.  
"Anything within our capabilities," Markus replied.  
"...do you have a shower I can borrow?"  
"...sorry?"  
"That's what you're after?" James asked with surprise in his voice.  
"Come on, I haven't had a proper wash in three days!"  
"Neither have I, and I don't complain," James replied.  
"Maybe you should," Muse commented.  
"What's that supposed to mean?" James asked.  
"You smell."  
"What do you expect after that fight we had?"  
"You smell but she doesn't," Muse said with a nod towards Mirise. "Clearly one of you cares enough to clean up after that."  
"...when did you wash off?" James asked Mirise.  
"I didn't," Mirise said. "I... don't really sweat. Not much."  
"You do that thing with your hair, and you don't sweat," Muse stated. "What even are you?"  
"I don't know," Mirise said. "I think we found that the only answer to that is that I'm me."  
"Anyway," Markus said, "sure thing. You can use our bath..."  
"Thanks," Rink replied and turned towards James as she sat down on one of the beds. "She's right, you know. You should think about your appearance."  
"Fine, fine," James replied. "But more importantly right now, how are we going to do this?"  
"First of all, I'd like to know more about what you can do," Markus said. "I have a plan, a draft of a plan at least, but the specifics..."  
"Ask away," Rink said.  
"Most importantly, you... you have a devil fruit power."  
"Sound Fruit."  
"Can you make any kind of sound?"  
"As far as I know."  
"Sounds that humans can't hear?"  
"Like this?" Rink said and took a deep breath. "Mi... mi... mii..." She went higher with each repetition, before opening her mouth fully as if she were screaming, but didn't make any audible sound. From somewhere outside, a muffled bark was heard.  
"Not bad. Maybe a stupid question, but... can you sound like a cat?"  
"I'm starting to see where this is going," Rink said and let out a few meows. "Well, sounding like a cat isn't really something you need sound powers for..."  
"Even so, I'd say you're the key to getting into the mayor's mansion," Markus said. "Which means... do you think you can keep two guards busy?  
"What are they like?"  
"They're fairly strong, former Marines... I was hoping you could keep them tied up while I deal with Galt. With your powers... how do you use them in a fight?"  
"That's where this comes in," Rink said and held up the sack she had brought with her.  
"What's that?" James asked.  
"My weapon," Rink replied. "I haven't used it in a while, but... it should be fine."  
"So you use more than your voice?" Markus asked.  
"Sound is a lot more than just voice," Rink said. "And this lets me utilize that better."  
"So... what is it?"  
"Specially made arm guard," Rink replied and took out a leather sleeve with what looked to be armour plating on one side from the sack. She put the sleeve on her left forearm and pulled some straps on the underside to fasten it before taking out a tuning fork from the sack as well. She tapped the plating lightly with the fork. "Lets me concentrate the sound and control the direction of it better. Kind of hard to control where the sound goes if I just use my voice, so... I found a way to do that."  
"Interesting... well, it seems you'll be able to hold your own," Markus said and turned to James. "Then there's you..."  
"What about me?"  
"You're fairly strong, it seems. Do you have any training?"  
"Not much," James replied. "It's mostly from experience."  
"Weapons?"  
"Right now, just this dagger," James said and held it up. "I mostly use my fists. And feet."  
"Try using your head sometimes too," Muse commented from where she was sitting, without turning around.  
"Muse, please," Markus said.  
"Just saying."  
"So, a brawler... close combat."  
"Pretty much," James said.  
"And Muse specializes in long range..." Markus said, mostly to himself, before finally turning to face Mirise. "And finally we have you with your... water ability."  
"If you're looking for explanations, I don't have any," Mirise said.  
"From what I could tell from our little struggle, you make good use of that unique ability of yours. You're quite agile, even if lacking in pure physical strength."  
"I don't tire easily, but yeah," Mirise said.  
"Do you use any weaponry?"  
"I use what I can find if I need to," Mirise replied. "I don't like carrying weapons around."  
"Anything else useful to know?"  
"Well... I can make my water into ice, but I have to stay still for that and it takes a while, so it's not really that useful," Mirise replied.  
"Alright," Markus said and clapped his hands together. "I think I know what I need to know... I think I know how to do this. But let me look over it a bit more..."  
"I'll go ahead and borrow your bathroom, then," Rink said and looked around, taking off her arm guard and putting it back in its bag. "Uh... where is it?"  
"I'll show you," Muse said and stood up. She went up the stairs, Rink following.  
"So where'd you pick that one up?" James asked Markus once he believed Muse was out of earshot. "She's kind of a mood killer."  
"It's a long story," Markus replied as he sat down at the desk and started flipping through some papers. "She doesn't want to talk much about her past, but I get the feeling she's been through a lot."  
"Who hasn't?" James replied.  
"Still, she's been a great help and she's amazing with that bow," Markus said. "So how about yourself? Why are the three of you together?"  
"I came to Avasine to look for people to travel with and somehow ended up with the two city celebrities," James said. "I'm still not entirely sure how that even happened."  
"Avasine, huh... I've stopped by there. There's not a lot of traffic between there and Kurita..."  
"I can see why," James said.  
"Hopefully, taking down Galt will mean that this island can live again..." Markus said. "Anyway, celebrities?"  
"Rink was a popular singer working at a hotel, and Mirise..."  
"My dad's the mayor there," Mirise said. "I've lived there all my life, but I felt like there was more for me out there."  
"Oh, is that so," Markus said. "Well, I hope we're not ruining your trip too much."  
"Eh, it's as Rink said, really," James responded. "It's a dangerous world. Might as well do what we can to help it."  
"She seems like quite the character," Markus said.  
"She's... persuasive."  
"I can see that," Markus said and reached into a desk drawer in search of something. "By the way... I think you could make use of this." He pulled out a flintlock pistol and handed it to James.  
"Huh?" James said as he accepted it. "Why?"  
"Close combat is one thing, but sometimes you need something to keep distance with too," Markus said. "I carry one to back up my swords, if needed. Have you used a pistol before?"  
"Yeah, but not recently," James replied.  
"Well, just make sure your shots count," Markus said as he tossed another small bag to James. "There's the gunpowder and stuff."  
"Alright... thanks," James said and held the pistol out in front of him, as if practicing aiming. "So where'd your friend go, anyway? Is the bathroom that far away?"  
"I think she just wanted to step away from us for a little bit," Markus replied. "She's really not much the social type."  
"I kind of figured..."

* * *

"Aaaah, this is the life," Rink said. She was lying in the almost filled bathtub, resting her feet on one end and her head on the other, holding her kiseru pipe in her right hand hanging over the edge of the tub. Her face was completely uncovered, as the bath or shower were the only places where she didn't wear her eyepatch. Where her right eye would be, there was mostly only scar tissue in the shape of an eye socket left, with a few lonely eyelashes in the middle. "I'm not one to demand luxury, but sometimes you need to relax, you know... thanks for letting me use that oil, too."  
"You're welcome," Muse replied. She was sitting on the floor outside the bathroom with her back towards the door, having decided Rink's company was preferable at the moment. "How do you stand that guy?"  
"James? He's not so bad, really," Rink replied. "Once you get to know him."  
"I wonder..."  
"You're not very talkative, are you?" Rink asked and took a drag on her pipe.  
"I... don't have much to say," Muse replied.  
"You didn't seem to be at a loss for words when you were fighting James and Mirise, from what I heard."  
"It's... different when I fight."  
"Are you ever happy?"  
"Only if I have something to be happy about," Muse replied. "Which I don't."  
"There's always something," Rink said. Muse opted to not reply. "But I suppose you have your reasons."

Even with the conversation dead, Muse remained where she was. Rink took the time to finish smoking her pipe and then sank her head entirely into the water for a moment, starting to wash her hair when she emerged. She scrubbed her body and rinsed off before exiting the tub, letting the water out. She dried her face and put her eyepatch back on before starting to dry herself off. As she emerged from the bathroom, she had one towel wrapped around her head and another tied around her waist, otherwise wearing only her underwear and jacket draped over her shoulders as usual, carrying the rest of her clothes in her arms. She only gave a nod towards Muse before they descended into the basement again to join the others.

"That was the greatest," Rink said as she entered the room.  
"Sounds ni-" James said before actually noticing her and her current state of dress. He put a hand over his face and looked down. "Do you _have_ to do that?"  
"Yes," Rink said with a giggle before removing the towel she had around her hair and threw it at James. "Your turn."  
"Oh, for... fine," he replied and stood up, dropping the towel on the floor. "So where's the bathroom?"  
"Up the stairs, the other door in the room we went through, then to your left. You can't miss it."  
"So then why... whatever," James said and disappeared up the stairs. Rink put her clothes on the bed, picked up the towel she had thrown, shook it off and resumed drying her hair.  
"At least you're not like him when it comes to seeing some skin," Rink said with a nod towards Markus.  
"I'm a doctor," Markus stated. "I've helped women who were giving birth, I've examined and operated on people with issues that necessitated taking off their clothes. It's all medical to me."  
"Makes sense," Rink said as she took off her jacket. "So how's that plan of yours coming along?"  
"I think I've got it figured out," Markus said and held up a paper. "But there's always some factors beyond our control..."  
"Let me see," Rink said and took the paper out of Markus's hand. She studied it for a few moments before looking up. "Wow."  
"So what do you think?"  
"I always thought that thing about doctors writing unintelligibly was just a joke."  
"Ha ha," Markus said and snatched the paper back from Rink. "But really, any comments?"  
"Not really," Rink replied and started putting her shirt back on. "Just... do you really think..."  
"What?"  
"You know what, let's cross that when we get to it," she continued and resumed getting dressed. "We should wait until James comes back anyway."  
"In the meanwhile..." Markus said and stood up, going over to a storage chest standing against one of the walls. "We should consider our disguises."  
"Disguises?" Mirise repeated.  
"Yes... I think it's for the best if we conceal our faces, at least," Markus said and opened the chest, containing various masks and hats. "Come and take a look."  
"Well, alright," Rink said as she, Mirise and Muse went over to see their options.  
"What's that one that looks like a bird?" Mirise asked and pointed at a white mask that mainly seemed to consist of two large, round eye holes and a closed beak with a few holes at the tip.  
"It's an old plague mask," Markus said and handed it over to Mirise. "They're supposed to have lenses, but this one didn't have any when I found it."  
"I like it," Mirise said as she held it over her face. "It smells kinda weird, though."  
"Probably just some residue, doctors used to think disease was carried by smell so they kept herbs in the beak," Markus explained. "You want that one?"  
"Yeah, I like birds," Mirise said as she fastened the straps on the back to try wearing it properly.  
"You should probably have something more," Markus said.  
"As long as I don't cover my hair," Mirise replied.  
"You're pretty short, you can borrow my doctor's coat... it should cover most of your body." He turned to Rink, who was pulling something out of the chest. "Find anything you like?"  
"I'll take this," Rink said and held up a bronze mask that looked like a human face with a big nose and a moustache, with holes for the eyes and mouth.  
"I think that one's meant to be worn with a helmet," Markus said.  
"Doesn't matter," Rink said. "I'll put on some hood, I guess."  
"We can do that," Markus said and picked up a small mask from the chest, which really only seemed like it'd add a thick black outline to his eyes.  
"That doesn't look like much of a disguise," Rink said as she fiddled with her mask.  
"It's a start," Markus said.  
"I'm done," Muse said. She hadn't spoken up or even looked in the chest much before now, just grabbed and put on an entirely white mask somewhat resembling a demon, with sculpted horns and an angry expression.  
"That's the most emotion I've seen on your face today," Rink said as she locked her mask on her face. At the same time, footsteps were heard from the stairs, and James returned to the room.  
"Alright, I'm-" he said before looking towards the others, who had all turned to face him. He looked at them and just blinked in confusion a few times, not sure if he even wanted to know.


	14. Divide

"This disguise is stupid."  
"Perfect for you, then."  
"Quit it, you two..."

James (wearing a long, black coat, a plain green metal helmet, a pair of green tinted goggles on top of them and a surgical mask currently pulled down on his chin), Muse (wearing a red hoodless cloak and the white demon mask, currently on top of her head) and Mirise (wearing Markus's white doctor's coat, which just about reached her feet, and holding the white plague mask in her hands) were standing in an alley in the northern part of town, which was where the town guard station was located. Even further to the north was the edge of town, beyond which was the Kurita wilderness - which, really, wasn't that wild. There were a few trees scattered around, a couple of small bushes, but mostly just a grassy plain between the town and the northern coast. There wasn't much other activity in this part of town - primarily warehouses that weren't staffed. As such, they didn't run too much risk of being seen by anyone where they were currently located, but there were the occasional guard patrol, and in either case they didn't want to draw any attention to themselves. It had been 38 hours, give or take, since the five of them had formed their alliance - as much of an alliance as it was.

"You're the one who said 'just give me anything'."  
"Who picks dark goggles for a night mission?"  
"Quiet!"

* * *

 _"We'll split into two groups," Markus said. "The big problems, as I have explained, are Atlas and the bodyguards, but the town guard must be kept busy too. So, after considering the relative strength and abilities of everyone... miss Kazai is the key to entering the mayor's mansion, so she and myself will deal with that, which means that Muse and James-"_  
 _"Are you serious?" Muse asked. "You're putting me with him?"_  
 _"Muse, I believe that you are best suited to take care of Atlas, but... not alone. So..."_  
 _"Then let me work with water girl."_  
 _"My name's Mirise."_  
 _"Miss Lake has another task, and James has the physical strength," Markus replied._  
 _"You said two groups..." James said._  
 _"The three of you will have to split up the guards," Markus replied. "You'll move to the northern district."_  
 _"And then what?" James asked._  
 _"Timing is crucial... Galt can't notice that anything's going on before we've confronted our targets, and Atlas must not be given a chance to come to the mayor's aid," Markus explained._  
 _"So how can we be sure we can get this Atlas on his own, anyway?" James asked._  
 _"Our biggest advantage is that Atlas is impatient... strike first and draw his attention, and he won't care if the other guards aren't following. And that's where miss Lake comes in."_  
 _"So what's my task?"_  
 _"The most important of all," Rink said before Markus had the time to continue his explanation._  
 _"What?" Mirise asked._  
 _"Making sure those two bozos don't kill each other."_

* * *

"Has he come out yet?"  
"Nothing so far..."

Markus (wearing a black poncho, a low black hat with a wide brim, a black eye mask and a black kerchief covering the lower half of his face) and Rink (wearing a short gray cloak with a hood and the bronze mask) were lying in wait outside the grounds of the mayor's mansion, located just outside the town to the east. Even though it was called a mansion, and even with the money Galt would have been taking in with the taxes and fees, it was really not that large of a building - two stories, with the upper one looking to be about half the size of the lower from the outside, and the lower one would be considered reasonably sized for a family of four. The part that was considered the mansion grounds was bordered only by a waist-high stone fence. Galt's two bodyguards, dressed in black suits, were standing guard outside the door, each one holding a leash with a guard dog on the other end - large dogs, though well-behaved. Markus and Rink were currently located outside the fence at the back of the building, with a small window on the second floor that Markus had pointed out would be the best chance of entering.

"And what if they smell us?"  
"Shouldn't be a problem since they can't tell the guards what they smell."

* * *

 _"Atlas meets with Galt after sundown, and when he returns to the guard station... that's the one shot we'll have," Markus said. "Once Muse and James have caught the attention of Atlas, they lead him outside the city, and then Miss Lake must prevent the rest of the guards from following."_  
 _"Won't that be dangerous?" James asked._  
 _"Atlas is the only dangerous one," Markus replied. "You attack him, he's not going to hold back any... but the rest of the guard, even those who were in his crew in the past, won't fight to kill, and they're going to have a hard time capturing miss Lake, I believe."_  
 _"I should be able to do that," Mirise said._  
 _"The only danger to you will probably be if Muse and James fails to defeat Atlas, but... if that happens, we're all in serious danger."_  
 _"Well, that's certainly not discouraging at all," James replied._  
 _"Scared?" Muse asked._  
 _"You shut up."_  
 _"I trust you two can handle it," Markus said. "Now, when it comes to Galt's mansion, we'll have to get past the dogs first..."_  
 _"So I'll lure them away while you make it in?" Rink asked._  
 _"Well, not exactly..."_

* * *

"This waiting is driving me nuts," James said.  
"Join the club," Muse replied.  
"It's driving you nuts too?" James asked.  
"No, but you are."  
"Will you... will you quit that?"  
"When I have a reason to," Muse replied.  
"Fine," James said. "Are you ready with the-"  
"Yes," Muse stated.  
"I can't believe we're actually doing this," James said and turned to Mirise. "What have we gotten ourselves into?"  
"Doing the right thing," Mirise replied. "I don't know if this is what I'm meant to do... but I have to do it."  
"Someone's reasonable," Muse commented.  
James sighed. "So, for real... what's the plan for fighting this guy? It's not like our fighting styles have much in common, you with your bow and me with... well, a knife and a gun."  
"Do you know anything about hunting?" Muse asked.  
"Not really, no," James replied.  
"One method of hunting involves using a decoy to lure the target," Muse explained. "Getting it into position, so the hunter can take their shot."  
"So what does that have to do with-" he started before coming to a realization. "Oh, no. No, no no. You're not serious."  
"And for this game, I'm the hunter... you're the decoy."  
"When did I agree to that?"  
"When you agreed to help us."  
"I should have known there was a catch," James said. "Mirise? Little help here?"  
"You should trust her," Mirise said. "You're never going to win if you can't cooperate."  
"But... being a decoy?"  
"To a degree," Muse said. "I'll be part of the fight too... but against an enemy like Atlas, I need openings. That's your job, to give me those."  
"Just so you know, if this gets me killed, I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life."  
"If one of us die, we all do. Probably."  
"Is that supposed to reassure me?"  
"No."  
"Still being the ray of sunshine, I see," James said and rolled his eyes.  
"You're not really lifting our spirits either," Muse replied.  
"I didn't think you had any to lift."  
"Do I have to separate you two?" Mirise asked.  
"Let's just go over the details of how we're going to do this again..."

* * *

 _"Wouldn't it be better to intercept him on the way, before there's any risk that the other guards would notice?" James asked._  
 _"It would if it was an option," Markus replied. "We've tracked him as well as we've been able to without being noticed... he takes different routes back all the time."_  
 _"The only thing we can be sure of is that he always goes to the guard station," Muse continued._  
 _"So what's the time frame we're looking at?" Rink asked._  
 _"From Atlas leaving Galt's place... most of our investigations points to it taking between seven and twelve minutes until he gets to the station," Markus explained._  
 _"That's... kind of a large interval."_  
 _"It's the best we have."_  
 _"Okay, so we get his attention when he returns... then what?"_  
 _"Get him out of town," Markus replied. "We want to keep as few people as possible from getting involved... and that's why miss Lake is going to be between Atlas and the rest of the guards."_

* * *

"Wait... I hear something," Rink said quietly.  
"Atlas?" Markus asked.  
"Hold on..." Rink said and closed her eye, not that it was very noticeable under the mask. "Door opening, dogs barking a little... someone large is stepping outside."  
"Atlas," Markus whispered.  
"So now..." Rink said.  
"We wait. Can you tell how far away he'll be?"  
"To a degree," Rink replied. "The farther away he gets, the less I can tell... but it's going to be impossible to know when he's gone far enough to not hear the dogs barking."  
"We'll just have to wing it," Markus said. "As long as Atlas doesn't notice what we're doing here and Galt doesn't notice what the others are doing in town..."  
"I just hope they'll be able to work together," Rink said.  
"They promised," Markus replied.  
"For whatever that is worth... well, the door's been closed, I hear him walking around inside."  
"Alright... now wait until he's upstairs."  
Rink nodded and closed her eye, listening closely to what went on inside the building. There wasn't a lot of movement going on, but she could pick up on Galt walking around, probably getting a glass of water, and eventually starting to walk up a set of stairs.  
"He's going to the second floor..." Rink whispered. "He's up."  
"Can you still hear Atlas?"  
"No... he's big, he takes long steps. Hopefully he won't care if he can hear the dogs barking now..."  
"That's the best we have. Wait another minute, then do it."  
"Mhm," Rink said and silently counted to sixty before yelling - with no apparent sound. The guard dogs in front started barking quite a bit, pulling on their leashes. Galt's bodyguards gave each other a quick glance before they started letting the dogs lead the way. As they rounded the corner, Rink did her best feline impression, making sure it was loud enough that the guards could hear it but hard to tell from where it came.  
"Just a cat," one of the guards commented. They looked around, but as they could spot nothing and the dogs had already calmed down, they returned to their usual place by the front door - which was soon opened from the inside by Galt.  
"What's this noise?" he asked.  
"It was just a cat, sir," the other guard replied. "Our apologies."  
"Very well," Galt said before returning inside.  
"Okay, next?" Rink asked Markus.  
"When he's going up the stairs," he replied.  
Rink kept listening - and repeated the imaginary cat routine, this time when Galt was halfway up the stairs. She did this three more times, with different intervals, but always when Galt was either on the second floor or on his way to it. Every time they moved a short distance, to make it appear that the cat was moving around. Galt didn't return down to talk to the guards every time, but the final time, he was clearly annoyed.  
"Oh, get this racket to stop," he said. "If it's just a cat, put them in their enclosure and let them bark all they want."  
"As you wish, sir," one of the bodyguards said and took both the leashes, leading the dogs towards an area in the far end of the garden with a higher wire fence and a gate.  
"Alright, this is probably our chance," Markus said and took out a rope with a hook. "Keep them barking!"  
"Alright..." Rink said and unleashed the sound that only the dogs could hear again, this time keeping it up for longer, throwing in the occasional meow. The dogs kept on barking as they were led further away, as Markus jumped over the fence and tossed the hook up towards the window, snagging the bottom of it - a sound that couldn't be heard over the barking.  
"That's as good as it's going to get, quick!" Markus whispered and started climbing. As the window wasn't locked, opening it wasn't any trouble, and Rink followed, slipping inside just as the dogs got too far away to mask what they were doing. Markus pulled up the rope behind him and closed the window. They seemed to be in the second landing, with the stairs down to the first floor close by, and two doors in the other direction - one of which Rink could tell led to a room currently inhabited by Galt.  
"He's over there," she whispered to Markus and pointed at the door in question.  
"Well," Markus said, "that was the easy part..."

* * *

 _"So we go in," Markus said. "If everything goes according to plan..."_  
 _"Is that before or after we annoy Atlas?" James asked._  
 _"It's probably the best if it's before, to minimize the risk of Galt finding out that something's going on," Markus replied. "Best would be if you've then attacked him before I get to Galt... but that's going to be hard. As long as they're kept apart... if he gets a chance to help Galt, we're gonna have problems."_  
 _"So don't screw it up," Muse said, looking at James._  
 _"Right back at you," he replied._  
 _"You still sure it should be those two working together?" Rink asked Markus._  
 _"Starting to see what you mean, but yes," Markus replied. "Anyway, I'll confront Galt, and it's likely he'll call for his guards to come inside, and then you have to keep them from reaching him and me."_  
 _"Check."_  
 _"Use any means you have to, but... try to avoid killing them if you can."_  
 _"I hear that."_  
 _"Same goes for miss Lake when it comes to keeping the rest of the town guard away from Atlas... and that part's going to be less predictable in general," Markus explained. "Hopefully, they won't come at you all at once."_  
 _"With what you told us about the layout of the area, I think I have some ideas," Mirise said._  
 _"Wouldn't it be better to just shoot him while we have the element of surprise?" James asked._  
 _"Won't work," Muse said. "He's a lot more perceptive than he seems."_

* * *

"I think I see him," Mirise said, peeking around a corner two buildings down from the guard station. With the three of them placed in strategic spots, they had been trying to keep watch over all potential ways Atlas could approach the guard station. Today, he had taken a direct, if slow, route - nine minutes and thirty-eight seconds had passed since he left Galt's mansion. Muse and James quickly moved over to Mirise, to see what she had found.  
"That's Atlas alright," Muse confirmed.

They had said he was large, and that was no lie - Atlas would tower over any normal person, being over two metres tall and seemingly almost as wide, a lot of which seemed to be muscle. He was dressed in an oversized version of the red uniform worn by the other town guards, with golden buttons and black shoulder pads, white pants and black boots. He was surprisingly clean-shaven, with very short, dark yellow hair only at the top of his head. In his left hand, slung over his shoulder, was indeed an anchor. A coiled chain was hanging from his belt, at his right hip.

"Okay... this is it," Muse said. "Before he actually gets into the guard station... Mirise, you back off for now."  
"Sure," Mirise said and started moving towards the spot she had picked out for her next task.  
"James, ready..." Muse said as she drew an arrow and nocked it in her bow. James, slightly begrudgingly, covered his eyes and mouth with the goggles and surgical mask as Muse took aim. At least this part wasn't necessarily something that needed to be perfect right away...  
"Ready," James said.  
"Here we go..." Muse fired her arrow, aiming at the wall closest to Atlas rather than Atlas himself, as well as she could from her current angle. It flew through the air and struck the wall, in such a way that Atlas would hopefully notice it... which he certainly did.  
"Huh?" he exclaimed and looked in their direction. "What is this?"  
"Atlas!" James exclaimed, having stepped out so that he was in plain sight for Atlas. Muse, on the other hand, had stepped back (after pulling the mask down over her face), so all Atlas saw was James, with his helmet and face covers. He had pulled his dagger, and pointed it towards Atlas.  
"...who are you?" Atlas asked.  
"The one who's going to take you out," James replied and pulled his pistol, aiming at Atlas who had already started moving towards him.  
"A troublemaker?" Atlas said. "I'll deal with you!"  
"C-come on," James said and moved around the corner, holstering the pistol and setting off running towards the town limits. Atlas wasn't far behind and closing in, given his longer legs. Muse had already exited the city, and if she followed what they had agreed on, would be waiting... and Mirise was in position for her part, and would hopefully not be noticed by Atlas.  
"Captain!" came a voice from where Atlas had followed James. Atlas stopped only momentarily before resuming his pursuit, without so much as a word. "Let's follow!"  
James did not in any way acknowledge the voice, but thought he vaguely recognized it - which wasn't strange, as it was the same guard that had been leading the squad that encountered them in the alley a few days before. Three other guards were behind him as they started following Atlas and James.

They were two buildings away from the edge of the city, which James and Atlas had already crossed, when water suddenly splashed down right in front of them seemingly from the sky. They stopped momentarily before something else descended in front of them, almost resembling a ghost. Face covered by a white mask with a beak, body mostly covered by a white coat ending at the ankles, feet bare.

Mirise landed in a crouch before looking up at the group in front of her. Four of them, all with spears... she could take this. She already had a good amount of water, but left it still for now.  
"Wha-" one of the guards exclaimed. "Who are-"  
"I cannot allow you to proceed any further," Mirise said, trying to sound as intimidating as possible.  
"Move aside!" the one in front said.  
"Not happening," Mirise replied.  
"We can take them out," another guard said and started advancing with his spear pointing forwards.  
"You wish," Mirise said and watched his movements. If they were all like this, she wouldn't even have to use any effort - she stepped to the side, shifted her water slightly when he was on top of it, and easily grabbed his arm as he started slipping. She wrested the spear away from him, grabbing it in her right hand, and pushed him back towards the rest of the group. "Is that all you have to offer?"  
"Alright," the guard in front said and took a few steps towards Mirise, casting a glance behind her to spot Atlas as well. "I can see that there's something going on here tonight. I will handle this... this apparition. The rest of you, make sure that the citizens are safe!"  
"What about Atlas?"  
"Our captain is stronger than all of us... he can handle himself. The citizens are the most important for now!"  
"What about mayor Galt?"  
"He has his own bodyguards, and his residence is secure. Patrol the town to make sure that no one is in further danger!"  
"As you wish, sir," the guards replied in unison as they left.  
"Well then..." the guard said as he looked back to Mirise and started approaching her. "Maybe you'd like to tell me what's going on here."

* * *

 _"And then... there's one last favour we're going to have to ask of you," Markus said._  
 _"...yes?" Rink said._  
 _"After this is all said and done... we can't remain on Kurita. We have to run."_  
 _"Won't that make you even more suspicious?" James asked._  
 _"Most people don't even know us," Markus replied. "And even if it's to help Kurita... it's not something that's going to be forgiven."_  
 _"And?"_  
 _"We... we don't have any mode of transport ourselves. So..."_  
 _"You want us to take you away from here," Rink said._  
 _"Yes... you have a ship, so we hoped..."_  
 _"We're running out of room as it is," James stated._  
 _"Just... just to the next island, we can take it from there..."_  
 _"We can do that, can't we?" Rink asked James who mostly sighed._  
 _"Alright, fine," he said. "To the next island."_  
 _"Thank you... I can't express how much all of this means to me..."_

* * *

"This is it," Markus told Rink. "This is the one shot we get. Thanks for everything... and good luck."  
"I don't need it," Rink said and pulled the hood over her head as she moved to the top of the stairs. The bodyguards were still outside. Galt was currently not in his office - the door to which was open - and, according to Rink, most likely in the bathroom across the hallway from the office in question.  
"Once and for all..." Markus said to himself as he slowly and silently walked into Galt's office.

It wasn't too large of a room. A fairly big desk with a large chair behind it and two smaller chairs in front, some bookshelves, a filing cabinet. The walls were sparsely decorated, with maps of North and West Blue and a marine flag being the only things catching Markus's eye. There was a single window looking out over the town of Kurita, and not a lot of light - although some of that could be explained by it currently being night, it didn't seem like it'd be very bright of a room even during the day.

Markus looked around. Well, it was obvious where he'd hide - and hope that Galt would come back to the office. That there still were a bunch of papers and a pen lying on the desk made that seem likely. As the door was facing the desk and opened inwards, Markus placed himself behind it... and waited.


	15. Office meeting

He didn't have to wait long. Just a few minutes later, Markus heard water running followed by a door opening. He swallowed as he heard Galt's footsteps... he was walking towards the office. One step, two steps, three steps, four steps and he was inside. It was now or never, Markus had finally gotten Galt alone in the same room... all that he had worked for since...

Galt wasn't a tall man. Markus stood at least two heads taller, and Galt usually had a hunched over posture, making him appear even shorter than he was. His hair was short and white, his face wrinkled but clean-shaven, but he was in surprisingly good physical shape for his age, pushing sixty. He regularly used a cane while walking, but it appeared to mostly be for show as he did not seem to have any problems moving around without one either.

Galt hadn't noticed anything yet. He just walked to the other side of his desk, sitting down in his chair, paying no mind to the fact that the door wasn't fully opened. Markus considered himself lucky that he hadn't closed the door, but that was a possibility he had taken into account - and either way he would have had the element of surprise. Galt was none the wiser as he looked down at his papers and resumed writing, just as Markus had suspected. No point in waiting any longer.

Markus slammed the door shut, prompting Galt to look up in surprise.  
"Huh?"  
"Good evening, mayor Galt," Markus said.  
" _Guards!_ " Galt screamed. For his age, he could scream surprisingly loud, Markus noted. And if anyone had heard it, it was Rink, so she'd at least be ready if they came in. "Who are you?"  
"You don't know me, but I know you," Markus said. "But..."  
"I don't know how you came in here, but get out," Galt said, barely even listening to Markus. "My bodyguards will-"  
"Your bodyguards will be busy," Markus said. "As will all of your other shields."  
"What are you talking about?" Galt asked.  
"I am talking about that tonight is when it ends," Markus said. "Kurita has suffered under you for too long."  
"You don't know what you're talking about."  
"Oh, I do," Markus said. "I've seen it... I've seen how you bleed this island dry."  
"I have expenses-"  
"None of which are to the benefit of the citizens!"  
"You don't know anything about running a town!"  
"I know about compassion," Markus said. "I don't know how or why you became the mayor... but it wasn't for love of Kurita!"  
"You don't know anything about me."  
"Oh, I know more than you think," Markus said. "You were born here, joined the Marines, spent many years in North Blue... then, when you retired, you returned here."  
"That much is true, but those things are no secret," Galt replied.  
"And when you returned, you brought someone with you... that became the captain of the town guard, and has been instrumental in keeping the island afraid."  
"I..." Galt looked around. "To... to tell you the truth, I... it's him, it's Rag- er, Atlas... he's the one you want, I'm just a-"  
"Don't give me that," Markus said. "You don't fear Atlas, not at all... you're in cahoots. You control him, even!"  
"You make all these claims," Galt said as a gunshot was heard from downstairs. Galt rose from his chair, causing Markus to take two long steps towards him. "What was-"  
"That would be your guards trying to get here," Markus said. "But I couldn't let that happen... I could have taken you out already, but I had to make sure... make sure that you know _exactly_ what I am doing this for."

* * *

"That was mayor Galt!"  
"I'll go check on him..."

In the front of Galt's mansion, his bodyguards had heard his call after Markus had made himself known. Deciding that it was probably enough with one of them, the other remained at the front door. The guard who entered did so slowly, peering around the dark ground floor. He looked around, but could not see anything out of the ordinary, and so started going up the stairs at the other end of the room. After ascending a few steps, he just barely saw the figure sitting at the top of the stairs before hearing a single word, immediately followed by feeling the force of something pushing him backwards.

" _ **No.**_ "

It could best be described as a deep, heavy whisper. He couldn't advance further, but stumbled, falling backwards down the stairs. He caught himself, avoiding any real damage from the fall, and as he rose, noted that the hooded figure was slowly walking downwards. He stood up, pulling two pistols from his belt and taking aim. But before he could fire, he saw the figure waving its arm, and then something invisible struck him - one hit on his right hand, another on the pistol held in his left. It almost felt like bullets.

" **Back,** " the figure spoke, having stopped halfway down the stairs. This time, there was no force pushing him back, but the voice still deeply unsettled the guard.  
"Who are you?" he asked as the front door opened, the other guard entering.  
"Are you alright, Francis? I heard-" he said before spotting the figure on the stairs and pulled a gun himself. "What is going on?"  
"Andres! Something weird is going on, dude," the guard named Francis said and walked back to his companion. "But mayor Galt may be in danger..."  
"Let's clean this up, then," Andres replied. "Just one enemy should not be a problem!"  
"He's doing something weird, though," Francis said. "Struck my guns without touching me..."

Under her mask, Rink was smirking. These two shouldn't be much of an issue... they had no idea what she was capable of, what her power was, or even that she was a she - but to be fair, she'd also have thought that someone with the voice she was currently using was a man. That fit her purposes nicely, though doing the voice would probably not work to scare them for much longer.

" **I can't let you pass,** " she said in the same tone anyway. Might as well have some fun with it while she could. She was holding a tuning fork in her right hand, but was pretty sure the two guards couldn't see what it was with this lack of light. " **Francis, Andres...** " she spoke, though telling them apart wasn't the easiest thing - same height, same build, same short black hair. As far as Rink could guess, they were twin brothers. Andres had a slightly deeper voice, at least.  
"And you think we'll just accept that?" Francis said and started running towards her. Rink said nothing and simply struck her arm guard with the tuning fork, then did two quick swings towards the approaching Francis. This time, they struck his chest. He started feeling around the area where he had been hit, looking down at his hand almost expecting blood. But her bullets of concentrated sound hadn't even made any holes in his clothes, not that he could tell what it was he had been hit with.  
" **Yes.** "  
"Francis, get down!" Andres shouted and fired his pistol. Rink sidestepped the bullet without much effort and jumped down a few steps, throwing another two sound attacks their way. Andres, noticing she was doing something but not exactly what, threw himself on the ground before they could hit him, though. He felt, and thought he heard, something pass over him. Rink was standing at the lowest step as both of them got to their feet again, staring at her.  
"This is ridiculous," Francis said and reached into his right pants pocket. "Let's end this quickly..."  
"I got you," Andres replied and did the same, moving his pistol to his left. They both pulled out something, but Rink couldn't quite see what it was - the light was low and the mask didn't do any wonders for her field of vision. Luckily, that didn't inhibit her navigation much.  
"Ready," Francis said and held up one of his pistols as well.  
" **It doesn't matter what you try,** " she said and stared at them. No need to move more than she had to, especially not since her primary mission was to prevent the two of them from going upstairs. Didn't seem they'd let her do that, though, as they both took aim and fired - and there wouldn't be any easy sidestepping these shots. They were both aiming for her legs, it seemed, so she jumped over the shots, landing on the floor in front, holding her arms out for balance - and as she landed, felt something snag her right arm.  
"Got 'em!" Francis said, pulling something with his right hand.  
"What the-" Rink said as she looked at her arm. She couldn't see what had caught her, but there was definitely something there. She didn't have much time to reflect on it, though - Andres was approaching, and made a throwing motion towards her, looking like he was aiming for her head. She ducked, whereupon he pulled his hand back and did another throw - and this time, something started pulling on her left leg.  
"That's more like it," Andres said with a smirk. Both of them had started pulling, causing Rink to move forwards, before they started running around her in a circle. She felt how more of her body got caught on something, and started to realize what was going on.  
"I see..." she said to herself. Trying to wriggle free didn't help much, so she observed their movements. One lap, two laps... she didn't need much more. She took a deep breath, and when Francis was in front of her the next time, let out a loud shriek. Not the loudest she could manage - that would probably have broken every piece of glass in the vicinity - but quite louder than a human would be expected to be capable of. Francis, instinctively, stopped, dropped what he was holding, brought his hands up to his head, closed his eyes and took a few steps backwards. Andres, having been behind her, hadn't taken the full force of the shriek, but was wincing - clearly in pain as well. It was the moment Rink needed, as the grip they had had on her loosened. She managed to free herself enough that she could take two few long steps forwards and strike Francis in the head with her arm guard, knocking him out. She heard steps behind her, but not coming towards her - turning around, she saw Andres had started running for the stairs and was already ascending. She quickly used her tuning fork to send two sound bullets his way, one of which hit his right leg, resulting in a stumble. Which, given that he was trying to run up a set of stairs, led to the obvious result. He fell downwards, and while he quickly started getting up from the heap he had become at the bottom of the stairs, Rink was now standing in front of him.  
"You won't-" he started saying, but Rink knocked him out with a well-placed strike to the forehead before he could finish his sentence. She dragged her left hand across her right arm, removing what she had been caught with - some sort of thin, transparent wire with a lot of small barbs. She couldn't tell what material it was made of, but didn't have much time to ponder it as her thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of a gunshot from upstairs.  
"Oh, hell..."

* * *

"Tell me then," Galt said. "Why are you doing this? Or... more importantly... who are you?"  
"You don't know me personally," Markus replied. "But perhaps you'll remember someone else... I am a doctor, mayor Galt. A doctor who has done what he can to help Kurita... both those who live there, and now, the island itself. This island is sick, and you are the cause!"  
"So you think that getting rid of me would fix everything?"  
"I know that if Kurita is to have even a chance to be fixed, the root of the problem has to be removed. You!"  
"Hmph... that will accomplish nothing. Even if I'm gone, then Atlas-"  
"I told you," Markus said. "He will not be the one to continue your work, if he even lives through the night..."  
"Hah!" Galt exclaimed. "I don't know who you've roped into your little project, but surely there's no one on the island who'd be able to stand up against Atlas and the rest of the town guard..."  
"I didn't say it was anyone from Kurita."  
"You..." Galt swallowed.  
"And the guards won't be able to help him either... we've seen to that."  
"Aren't you one to think of everything," Galt said with a hint of frustration in his voice. "Who _are_ you?"  
"My name is one you might recognize," Markus said as he pulled the kerchief off his face. "I am Markus Flint, and I am going to make sure you'll never hurt anyone again!"  
"Wait..." Galt said and looked at Markus's face. "A doctor... Flint... _now_ I get it. You're _David's_ boy!"  
"My father, David Flint... what you did to him and his patients was unforgivable," Markus said. "It took me years to track you down, to find allies, to get an opportunity... but now, tonight, what you started all those years ago is finally coming to a close."  
"I didn't think you had survived... looks like I was careless," Galt said with a smirk as he slowly stepped closer to his desk, moving his hand to a drawer...

* * *

 _Eleven years earlier..._

The island of Calbia, in the western part of North Blue. A sparsely populated island, home to only a few hundred people, all of them living in the spacious city of Raman... or, at least, what had once been the city of Raman. That what stood within its boundaries was still considered one city was largely a remnant from a time when the island was more prosperous and the city was far more lively. But years of harsh weather and pirate raids had left the landscape barren, and many houses had been torn down, resulting in a cityscape consisting of scattered buildings, seemingly haphazardly placed along a road that had seen better days, leading to the largest part of the city that was still intact and still saw most of the activity on the island - the city center, where most of the business took place, even if the island would not have been able to survive without the occasional visit to neighbouring islands for trading. Many had moved away already, and those who remained did so largely for emotional or nostalgic reasons, or carrying with them a hope that Calbia would one day prosper again.

David Flint was among those who had chosen to remain. He was a native of the island, his mother having been the chief of a large hospital and had been instrumental in reforming the city's medical practices. But the hospital no longer remained, and as she had been in her late forties when having David, passed away only a few months after the birth of David's own son - Markus Flint. David had ever since his youth wished to follow in the footsteps of his mother, and quickly became one of the most well-respected doctors on the island. But his career took a sharp decline after the death of his beloved wife Miranda to an unknown illness, only three years after she had given birth to Markus. David was thrust into depression, and for several years abandoned his work. He took to drinking, and if it hadn't been for that he had Markus to take care of, would probably have become even more of a wreck. What ultimately made him resume his calling was when Markus, at eleven years of age, announced his intent to become a doctor as well.

The hospital had fallen into ruin, and so David and Markus moved from their small home to an abandoned apartment building, converting it into a small clinic, the two of them living on the ground floor and housing patients on the two floors above it. Markus learned from his father and others with medical knowledge who occasionally would help them, and spent much of his free time reading books on the subject. David's clinic received a bit of a reputation for helping anybody with an ailment - something that did not go over well with everyone...

"It doesn't matter how many times you ask me, Commodore Galt. My answer is still no!"  
"You shelter criminals, doctor Flint."

On the bottom floor of the Flint clinic, two men were standing on different sides of a desk. One of them, looking to be in his late thirties, dressed in a white doctor's coat with a brown shirt and black pants underneath, with short brown hair, wearing glasses. The other, older-looking but shorter man, was wearing a Marine Commodore's jacket on top of a more standard Marine uniform, and his Commodore's hat placed on the desk. He had black hair that seemed to have started graying already.

"It doesn't matter what they are," David said. "When they are here, they are my patients, and it is my responsibility to keep them safe."  
"I have tried being reasonable with you, doctor Flint," Galt replied. "You should think of what is best for you."  
"Threats will get you nowhere," David answered. "Unless you are ill, we have no more business to discuss."  
"So be it," Galt replied and picked up his hat before he turned to leave. "But my patience is running thin." He exited through the front door, forcefully closing it behind him. Outside, next to the door, stood a large man, wearing an oversized Marine jacket on top of what appeared to be prisoner's rags, with long, dark yellow hair, a thick moustache and beard of the same shade. He held an anchor in his left hand. Galt looked up at him. "Come, Ragnar, we are done here."  
"Understood," he replied and followed Galt away from the building.

Inside, David had sat himself down behind the desk. He was slumped down in his chair, holding his hand to his head. Markus, who had been in the next room and overheard the argument that had gone on just before, entered the room and approached his father. It wasn't the first time he had heard his father and Galt talking, but it had usually been less heated.  
"Are you okay, dad?" he asked.  
"I'm fine, Markus," David replied.  
"Is it true what he said?" Markus asked.  
"Some of our patients... they are pirates," David answered. "But that doesn't mean they're bad people... the Marines want to see the world in black and white, good and evil, but it's never that simple."  
"Is he going to do something to us?"  
"I don't know... but I want to trust that a Marine Commodore understands..."  
"I thought the Marines were for protecting people," Markus said.  
"Many Marines truly do believe in that," David replied. "That it's a call to make the world a better place..."  
"Like us?"  
"Yes, like us," David said. "Being a doctor means helping anyone who is hurt or ill regardless what they have done. You know that."  
"You always say that," Markus replied.  
"Promise me, Markus..." David said and put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Promise me that you'll always help those who need it, no matter who the are..."  
"I promise, dad," Markus said with a smile. "I promise."


	16. A man of his word

Many years ago, in its more prosperous days, the city of Raman had covered essentially the entire eastern half of Calbia. While there were patches of nature that had been incorporated in the design of the city, where the city ended in the east, so did the island. Western Calbia, on the other hand, had always consisted on entirely undeveloped lands. Even if the decline of the city had made the exact boundaries of it a bit more muddled these days, western Calbia was a place where the remaining citizens never felt any reason to venture and where trying to build anything wouldn't have been anywhere near worth it. The area directly outside of Raman consisted mostly of cliffs, with sparse clusters of low trees, and further west was a thick undergrowth covered by a canopy that barely let any sun through. As there was not much wildlife to speak of, hunting had never been a worthwhile profession on Calbia, and as such the west remained as it was - almost entirely untouched by human hands.

The days immediately following Galt's last visit to David Flint's clinic passed by with nothing out of the ordinary happening. Galt's Marine ship was even no longer anchored at what once had been the docks of Raman. Markus and his father resumed looking after their staying patients, currently five of them, in addition to the occasional visitor who just needed quick help. They did not talk about Galt at all, not even to each other. David seemed to want to forget him as soon as possible, and was glad he was gone - his ship had been staying at Calbia for a little over a month, and while he and his crew had been largely amicable to the rest of the citizens, he had still partaken of the city's limited resources without giving much back. David appeared to have been the largest thorn in his side and reason to remain, however. He had never shown any fear of Galt, and kept on what he was doing without worry, despite what Galt had told him. Because, he told himself, in the end Galt was still a Marine - he was in employ of the World Government to ensure justice in the world, and would protect the innocent over everything else...

It was the night of the sixth day after Galt had left. Where Raman of the past had been a city that appeared to never sleep, the only ones roaming what remained of the streets after sundown nowadays were the homeless and orphans. There was no law enforcement to speak of, most people cared only to protect their own. David was not the only exception to this, and those that still had businesses found it important to maintain a good relationship with those that remained, but there was no sense of community any more.

David and Markus were asleep in their bedroom on the bottom floor of the clinic. The room contained two beds in opposite corners, each with a nightstand beside it and a dresser at the foot end. On David's nightstand was a picture of a woman with black, curly hair, hazel eyes and a big smile on her face. David would always wish Miranda good night when he went to bed, and good morning when he awoke. Markus normally slept well, but ever since Galt's last visit, had been more restless. He was tossing and turning, and sweating... perhaps a little too much. He felt the room was much hotter than it should be, enough to wake him up. He heard the sound of something crackling, but didn't immediately figure out what it was.

He shot out of bed. He ran over to his father and started shaking him.  
"Dad! Dad, wake up!" he said loudly.  
"Markus... wha..." David said, groggily.  
"There's, something's burning!" Markus said. "There's a fire!"  
"Wha-" David said and sat up. "Fire?"  
"It's, it's hot and it sounds like it and-"  
"Okay, let's... we have to get out," David said. "We have to get the patients out."  
"Alright," Markus said as David got out of bed and put on a pair of pants.

Of the patients currently staying at the clinic, one couldn't walk on his own due to one broken and one slightly less damaged leg. The others weren't _as_ hurt, but since only those who needed the most help were housed at the clinic and the only way up and down to the patient's rooms were the stairs, David and Markus would have to provide assistance to get them down and out. They had to work together to get the one with the bad legs (and his wheelchair) down, but otherwise gathering all the patients on the bottom floor posed no problem - but they had still not been able to locate the source of the fire, and it was increasing in intensity. It didn't seem to have made its way too far into the building yet, so as long as they got out, even if they couldn't do anything about the fire, all they'd lose would be...

David unlocked the front door and tried opening it - but it was stuck. "What the-" he said as he tried pushing on it, Markus coming over to help, but it wouldn't budge. Something was blocking it from the outside. He kept pushing, ramming into it with his shoulder, but nothing.  
"The- the window is barred too!" Markus exclaimed as he tried to open the window in the room. David came over to look, and so it was - someone had boarded it up from the outside. And as the window, as the door, opened outwards, there was not much they could do... breaking the window to remove the boards without getting cut up by broken glass would take too long.  
"This is... it has to be..." David mumbled to himself.  
"What are we going to do?" Markus asked.  
"Check the other windows," David said. "The one in the bedroom is too small... that leaves the kitchen window."  
"Alright," Markus said and ran off. David kept trying to get the door open, and could at least feel that whatever was blocking the door, it was... not completely immovable. But he couldn't get the door open far enough to see what it was.  
"It's no good," Markus said as he came back. "All the windows on this floor are blocked..."  
"Then... we're trapped?" David said as the fire increased in intensity. Their bedroom was already burning, and flames had started creeping through the walls. If the walls came down, the house would collapse... so waiting for a hole to open there was no option either.  
"I'll try to get out through a window upstairs!" Markus said and started running towards the stairs. David started following, worried.  
"Markus, it's-" he said, but as he was approaching the stairs, burning debris from the ceiling fell down in front of him. He looked up... the fire had really started picking up speed, there were flames everywhere, and it wouldn't be long now... Markus was their only hope. He returned to the front door, wondered if he should say something to the patients, but couldn't think of much... he wasn't sure how well they had picked up on the situation, some of them were medicated, and two of them including the guy in the wheelchair had fallen asleep again. He stood in front of the door, looked up to the ceiling, and screamed.  
"AAAAAAAAH!" he let out before running at the front door... and stumbled forwards as it swung open without any issues. He fell down, face first, and as he looked up, saw a short figure standing in front of him.  
"Ragnar," the person said calmly.  
"Wha-" David started saying. He only barely managed to see another figure to his left, towering over him, having something raised. The next thing he knew, that something came crashing down hard on his legs, and even if he wasn't a doctor he'd know they had both just been broken. As the pain took over, he felt someone lift him and throw him back inside the building. He managed to look up from where he was lying, and saw someone he recognized standing in the doorway... even if he wasn't wearing his Marine clothes right now. " _Galt!_ "  
"Oh, doctor Flint," he spoke, "you should have listened to me..."  
"Is this what the Marines have come to?" David asked with contempt in his voice.  
"I am only doing my job, doctor Flint," Galt replied.  
"Murder isn't your job!"  
"Justice is my job, doctor Flint," Galt said and looked at the open door, removing the key from its lock. "Tragically, the Flint clinic burned down in a terrible accident... with the doctor and all his patients trapped inside."  
"You're not going to get away with this!" David exclaimed.  
"It's nothing personal, doctor Flint," Galt replied and closed the door, locking it from the outside as David could only look on.  
" _Gaaaaaaaaaalt!_ " was the last thing he managed to scream before the ceiling started falling over him.

* * *

A little while later, Markus stood in front of the charred remains of the clinic. He had managed to get out through a window on the first floor, but as he had started making his way around the building, he had noticed the people in front, and heard them talking to his father... and it was clear to him that if he made his presence known, then he was definitely going to die too. So he had stayed out of sight, but still able to hear everything that was said... he had never felt such anger, and it took every ounce of willpower he had to not run to his father's aid. Even though he wouldn't be able to do anything, and it would get him killed... Galt and Ragnar had remained until the building started collapsing, and then left... but they hadn't walked towards the docks, instead making their way towards the west. The last Markus saw of them, they were climbing one of the cliffs that led to the Calbia wilds. Markus waited until they were completely out of sight, and then...

The debris was still warm, even if the fire itself had died out. He kept digging around where the front door should have been... and his first find was a charred corpse. It wasn't his dad, at least... it wasn't the first dead body he had seen, but this... he almost threw up, but kept on searching. Soon, he heard a sound, a very muffled sound, a small grunt... he used what strength he had left to remove some planks, and found...  
"Dad!" he exclaimed. His face badly burned, what could be seen of his upper body burned and bleeding... but it was David Flint.  
"Ma... Markus..." David managed to say. Markus sat down in front of him, with tears in his eyes.  
"Why... why did they do this, dad?" he said.  
"Some... cannot be reasoned with..." David said with a cough.  
"I'll get you out of there!" Markus shouted and stood up.  
"It's... no use..." David said. "I won't..."  
"Dad..." Markus said, tears flowing.  
"Oh, Miranda..." David said. "I'll... be with you..."  
"Say... hi to mom for me," Markus said with a pained smile. Neither he nor his dad were strong believers in any kind of afterlife, but when you had spent several years taking care of dying patients, it was easy to catch on to anything that would put both the patient and those close to them more at ease.  
"Promise me... Markus..." David started saying and took a raspy breath.  
"Y... yes?"  
"That you'll... always help... those in need. Pro... mise..." David said before his head slumped down.  
"Dad? DAD!" Markus shouted and started shaking his father - but there was no life left in David Flint. Markus stood up, wiped away his tears with his sleeve and looked down at the body in front of him. "I promise."

Markus Flint left Calbia the same day. He had managed to save a few things from the ruins of the clinic, but even if he had wanted to give his father a proper burial, he felt it best to leave it much the same as it had been, to maintain the idea that everyone in the house had perished should Galt return to the scene. He had stowed away on a trader ship, and even if he was discovered only a few hours after the boat had left Calbia, they allowed him to stay on the ship until they reached their first destination. He didn't tell them his name, only claimed he was an orphan living on the streets of Raman - which, technically, had been true for about nine hours. While still young, and with no money to his name, he became a traveling doctor - he helped where he could, earned some beli here and there, but never told anyone his full name. And even though he had promised his father to help anyone, no matter who they were, he would try to stay away from the Marines when he could - while he observed that most of them indeed were friendly and helpful, he did not want to risk Galt finding him... not yet. As he grew older, this feeling would find itself displaced by one wanting to find Galt, to make him pay for what he had done... but as he did not want to appear suspicious, any investigating he did was done quietly. Galt still had his men, it would probably be hard for Markus to do anything on his own...

And so the years passed for Markus Flint. Two years, three years, four years... and so, on the fifth year after the death of David Flint, Markus could be found on the island of Midu, in the more southern regions of North Blue. He had been there for a few months, helped out at a local hospital in exchange for food and shelter. He had started training for a potential future confrontation with Galt, or any other dangerous people he might run into - he had purchased two swords on his travels, figuring that as a doctor, a cutting weapon was the best choice for him. He hadn't yet tried to get any proper training from someone more knowledgeable, but was reading up on swordsmanship in books. He thought he had the basics down, at least.

One evening, when he was walking down to one of Midu's many beaches to practice, he spotted a small boat being pulled towards the island by the current. He didn't see anyone in it at first, but decided to take a closer look. As he came closer, he spotted a person lying down inside, face down. He couldn't tell if they were alive... he quickly took off his boots, socks, pants and shirt and waded out in the water, grabbing onto the boat and dragging it up on the beach. He inspected what was inside it... it was a young woman, mostly covered by a dark grey coat. She had long, black hair with a single streak coloured dark red, and some decoration consisting of a red flower and blue feather over her left ear. He put a hand on her shoulder, shaking her slightly, starting to turn her over so he could see her face.  
"Are you alright, miss?"


	17. The bigger they are

"I don't think you know what you're getting yourself into, boy," Atlas growled.  
"That's what I've been saying all along... but there's no going back now."  
"Hmph... if you tell me what you're doing, and come quietly to the station with me... then perhaps you can avoid getting hurt."  
"Well, that's not happening," James said. "Besides... if I told you about it, I doubt you'd let me go anyway."  
"You only have yourself to blame," Atlas replied. "Tell me, boy... what is your name, so I'll know what to put on your grave?"  
"I'm- hold on, I can't even see anything in these..." James said before removing his goggles and surgical mask. "Much better. The name's James, and you'll remember that as the name of the one who brought down mighty Atlas!"

"What the hell are you doing," Muse whispered - to herself, given that she didn't want Atlas to hear her - through gritted teeth. "Don't provoke him any more than we have to!" She had hid herself in a cluster of trees too the right of where James and Atlas were currently standing, sitting on a thick branch as high up as she could get herself in the largest tree of the bunch. Between the sun being down and her wearing a dark cloak, spotting her should at least be hard enough that as long as James kept Atlas's attention on himself, she should be safe. She held an arrow in her right hand, ready to fire whenever she got a chance.

Muse's bow was quite the marvel of engineering. It was a compound bow of her own design, metal limbs joined together by gear-like mechanisms, allowing it to be folded together and stored in her quiver. At the end of the limbs, the bowstring was being kept wound up on pulley-like wheels.

"Time to clean this up, then," Atlas said and took one long step towards James, swinging his anchor down. James threw himself to the side, causing it to miss and instead bury its pointy end in the ground.  
"You have got to be kidding me..." James said to himself as he spotted the hole it had made. If he got hit by that, he'd be lucky if he just broke all his bones... but as long as all the swings he had to watch out for were that wide...  
"Still, boy," Atlas said and followed up with a horizontal swing. James ducked, avoiding any damage, but Atlas didn't pause - he continued swinging towards James, who nevertheless managed to stay out of harm's way. The problem was that he didn't find many opportunities to counterattack - he'd have to get into Atlas's danger zone for that, and one wrong move there would be the last move he made. He silently cursed Muse in his head... give her opportunities, indeed. But there had to be a way, and if anything, it would be through the fact that Atlas didn't quite seem to take a careful and calculated approach to this fight.

He studied Atlas's movements. While every swing of the anchor left a large dead zone, Atlas would easily be able to cover that with his long legs. A kick from those wouldn't be too much less dangerous than a hit by the anchor. The horizontal swings didn't seem to leave any room to be used, but the occasional overhead strike...

That was it. Atlas always led with his left leg for those, meaning he wouldn't be able to do much on his left side right away. The problem was to get him to actually _do_ one of those. He sidestepped to the left...  
"Is that all you got?" James shouted. Atlas had little patience, he'd have to try to use that... and the overhead swing was definitely the one that'd cause the most damage if it connected, so if he could provoke him enough...  
"You're getting on my nerves, boy," Atlas said as James dodged yet another swing. Atlas raised his anchor - just what James had been waiting for - but before bringing it downwards, stomped on the ground with his left foot. James felt the ground vibrate, but managed to keep steady as the anchor came down. " _Be still!_ "  
"That's it..." James said to himself as he took two quick steps backwards, and immediately rushed to Atlas's left side before he had pulled the anchor back out. He gripped his dagger tightly in his left hand, and as he passed, stabbed it into Atlas's left leg. But as he tried to pull it out, he found that he was unable to... it was stuck. "Oh for the love of-"  
"Begone!" Atlas yelled and swiped at James with his leg. James let go of the dagger and managed to avoid most of the kick, but was brushed by it enough that he fell over. Atlas turned to him... and quickly turned back, using his right hand to catch an arrow that was flying his way.  
"That can't be good," James whispered to himself as Atlas glanced towards the trees where Muse were hiding.  
"So that's it," Atlas said as he broke the arrow in his hands and pulled James's dagger out of his leg, throwing it behind him. "You're not alone."  
"What about it?" James asked as he got to his feet. "With your size, this isn't fair either way!"  
"Fair has nothing to do with it, boy," Atlas said and swiped with his anchor to deflect two more arrows that were heading his way. "But we'll have to deal with that."  
"As if I'll let you," James said and put his fists up.  
"Without even your knife, what can you do?" Atlas said as he removed the chain that was hanging from his belt and moved it to his left hand. James didn't pick up exactly on what he did, but he soon threw the anchor upwards, the chain following after it. Atlas grabbed hold of the chain and pulled on it, causing the anchor, now with a chain attached, to come crashing down between them.  
"Okay, _now_ you definitely have got to be kidding me," James said as Atlas used the chain to bring the anchor airborne again, and this time did a horizontal sweep - James just managed to flatten himself on the ground to make it pass over him, but it wasn't the best position to be in. He prepared to roll away, but was given a moment's reprieve by Atlas's attention being taken away by another arrow from Muse, which he again caught in his right hand.  
"I'll deal with you next, boy," Atlas said and started spinning the anchor around in the air by way of the chain, before sending it flying straight towards the trees that Muse was hiding in. It struck the trunk of the largest tree, easily breaking it, and soon the sound of something falling down was heard - and it wasn't only a tree trunk.  
"No..." James said as Atlas pulled his anchor back to his hand. He made another attack towards the trees before turning to James, sporting a sinister grin on his face. This had certainly not gone their way...

* * *

"I would rather not hurt you," the town guardsman in front of Mirise said. "How about we try to solve this peacefully?"  
"I am afraid that it's much too late for that," Mirise replied. None of them had moved yet, just staring each other down with spears in hand. "It is my responsibility to not let you past here."  
"So be it, then," the guard said and took a stance with his spear pointing backwards at an angle and his left hand extended towards Mirise. "My name is Taggart, vice-captain of the Kurita town guard. What may I address my opponent as?"  
"I cannot tell you my real name," Mirise said. "But you can call me, uh..." She looked around. She hadn't actually thought of any fake name, even if she still thought it was a good idea to not say who she was. She briefly moved her left hand up towards her face, but obviously didn't get that far as the mask stopped her. The mask...  
"Yes?"  
"Plague. Yeah. You can call me Plague," Mirise said.  
"Plague?"  
"What's wrong with that now?"  
"Alright," Taggart said with a chuckle. "Plague it is."  
"Come at me as you wish," Mirise said and raised her left hand, with the palm opened towards the sky. She had started shifting certain parts of the water on the ground around, but not noticeably so. She didn't move, waiting for Taggart to take the first action. He took a few quick steps towards Mirise and swung his spear upwards, but Mirise dodged with a step back and to the right. She aimed a stab towards his leg with the spear she was holding, but it was unsurprisingly clear that he knew a lot more about spearmanship than she did and blocked it easily with his own weapon. Mirise closed her left fist, and a gush of water hit Taggart in the back. Not with a lot of force, but enough to divert his attention for a split second.  
"What-" he said and glanced behind him, seeing nothing, but feeling that his clothes had become wet. Mirise made use of the moment she had been given and spun her spear around, hitting Taggart's left leg with the back end. As he briefly started stumbling from the hit, Mirise begun moving the water under his feet around to make him slip, but it wasn't enough as he used his spear for support. He quickly regained his footing and started aiming a series of quick stabs towards Mirise, who moved backwards and attempted counterattacking with the spear she was holding, but it proved ineffective. But she still had her main weapon - and sent a decently-sized splash of water upwards from just in front of Taggart, hitting both his spear and his face. He ceased his attack in surprise, enough for Mirise to start her own barrage of attacks, combining swings of the spear with gushes of water from multiple directions. Now Taggart was getting pushed back, but it didn't last for as long as Mirise had wanted - after only a few steps, he planted his feet firmly on the ground and blocked Mirise's next spear attack, holding the spear horizontally in both hands and making an upwards motion, knocking Mirise's spear out of her hands. Before Mirise had enough time to react, he rushed forwards and hit her chest with the still horizontally held spear, knocking her to the ground. He dived down after her, holding the spear across her neck and his knees on her arms.  
"Fast..." Mirise started saying.  
"Enough!" Taggart yelled, looking down at her masked face. "Let's see who's hiding behind this 'Plague'..." he continued and moved his right hand off the spear, up towards Mirise's face, intending to pull off her mask.  
"You wish," Mirise said and directed as powerful a gush of water that she could manage at his left arm, moving it enough that she without much trouble could move her head upwards quickly, using the beak of the mask to deliver a few pecks to his face. She at least managed to strike his forehead, nose and mouth, which apparently was enough to make him reel back, giving up the unmasking attempt. Mirise felt the weight of him on her arms lessen, so she managed to wriggle free, pull herself further away and with her hands as support, direct a kick with both legs into Taggart's torso. He fell backwards, dropping his spear in the process. Mirise quickly snatched it up as she got back on her feet, made a short dash over to Taggart, planted a foot on his chest and pointed the tip of the spear towards his throat. "One move, and I'll..."  
"Al... alright," Taggart said. "You win... finish it..."  
"I will not kill you, mister Taggart," Mirise said. "This island... this town is going to need someone to take care of it... after..."  
"What is... what is that you are hoping to achieve?"  
"Tell me, mister Taggart... what do you think of your mayor and chief?"  
"Are they your targets?"  
"I believe you know already... that's why you sent the other guards away."  
"Atlas is... mayor Galt uses Atlas to keep Kurita afraid..."  
"You do not like him."  
"What I think doesn't matter... you have beaten me, fair and square," Taggart said. "I failed to stop you, and will accept responsibility... which means that if whoever that man that Atlas chased can't kill him, then both you and I will be the next targets for his wrath, if we stay here..."  
"And if Atlas falls?" Mirise asked.  
"Then... I don't know. But I will not try to stop it."  
"Where do you come from, mister Taggart?" Mirise asked.  
"Born and raised on Kurita... joined the town guard in the hopes of protecting it..."  
"I trust you... I'm going to let you go now, but no sudden movements..." Mirise said and diverted the spear from his throat and removed her foot from his chest. "I believe that you care about this island."  
"I do," Taggart said and slowly rose to a sitting position. He crossed his legs and his arms. "Whatever the outcome of tonight is... I'll stay here. I don't think that you have any intention to cause problems for the citizens."  
"We don't," Mirise said as she picked up the spear she had originally been using as well and started recollecting her water. She laid both spears on the ground in front of Taggart and then sat down on the other side of them. "I'll keep you company until I know who lives when morning breaks... you will have important work to do once we're gone, mister Taggart."  
"You may be right... miss Plague."  
Mirise smiled behind her mask, but didn't say anything else. Hopefully _that_ was never going to come up again.

* * *

James swallowed. While he hadn't particularly _liked_ Muse, he hadn't wanted for her to...

"Now you're on your own, boy," Atlas said as he started swinging his anchor in James's direction again. This time, with the chain in play as well, James found his situation had become significantly worse. The swings were wider, but the chain covered a lot more ground and gave Atlas more control, leaving no space for James to do... well, anything at all. He still had one card to play, but right now, that would be useless. There was only one thing he could use that would hopefully give him any sort of room, and for that, the greater distance between them, the better... at first, at least. So he ran backwards, and thankfully, Atlas seemed content with staying in place and letting the chain do the work. But the farther away James got, the less effective swings would be - and so, he pulled the anchor back to his hand, and threw it straight towards James instead.

This was what he had hoped for, and he didn't have any idea if this was going to work at all, but he had to at least _try_. He started running towards Atlas, as fast as he could. As Atlas saw him coming, he dragged the chain towards James, who managed to clear it with a jump and approached... Atlas caught the chain and started sweeping the other way, but before it reached James, he removed his helmet. His metal helmet.

And threw it at Atlas's crotch with as much force as he could manage.

Atlas roared out in pain, but it didn't stop him for as long as James had hoped - he immediately pulled the chain in James's direction, and this time it caught his legs. He fell backwards as Atlas took a long step towards him, and placed his right foot on James's left leg. He wasn't pushing down with as much force as he could, but James wasn't sure if that was better... the pain increased as he started hearing a cracking sound. He tried to struggle free to no real avail, and looked up to see Atlas raise his anchor.

"I will _end_ you, boy," he said, his face showing more anger than it had done before.

Muse observed as she took aim at Atlas's upper body. She was now sitting in the top of another tree that was still standing. When she had seen Atlas's anchor coming, she had quickly hooked her rope onto the tree next to her, and as the one she had been in fell, used the rope to let herself fall to the ground in a controlled fashion, avoid the next anchor attack, and quietly climb back up as Atlas's attention turned back to James. If Atlas thought she was dead or at least incapacitated, he wouldn't pay her any further mind... and if James did, he would hopefully start being more reckless in his attacks. In combination, Muse hoped that would mean a slightly better chance for an opportunity to take a shot.

And that was exactly what had happened. Atlas had stopped, and as long as he wanted to hurt James, wouldn't want to move much. This was it... this was the best opportunity she was going to get.

 _"This is the best opportunity you're going to get."_

Muse's hands started shaking. She had to take this shot... but a host of voices kept going through her head, memories whirling around... none of them being anything she wanted to remember at this time.

 _"Fire."_  
 _"You don't want anything to happen to him, do you?"_  
 _"Do it for Morrina."_  
 _"Remember your promise, and we'll remember ours..."_  
 _"You're the one who'll have to live with the consequences."_  
 _"Just this shot, then it'll all be over..."_

Screaming on the inside, she let her arrow fly.


	18. Day of the ceremony, night of the storm

_A note from the author: The title of this chapter is actually meant to be 'The day of the ceremony and the night of the storm', but chapter title length limits would not actually allow that. So there you go._

* * *

 _Twelve years earlier..._

In the far south of North Blue, without any other inhabited island or settlement nearby, lay the tiny, crescent-shaped island of Puamoku. The inner edge of the crescent held a sandy beach stretching almost from one end of the island to another, bordering a deep, clear cove. The outer edge of the island consisted of a steep cliff, sloping downwards in the direction of the beach. Between the cliff and beach, there was a landscape consisting mostly of a semi-dense forest.

And forming a border between the forest and beach, set up in what was practically a line, a collection of small huts, placed on platforms raised up by long, wooden stilts. The huts were mostly built out bamboo-like stalks held together by twine, with roofs that were made from sheets of bark that had then been covered by layers of woven grass. Starting at the trees just outside this long village, rope ladders and simple walkways could be found, set up as to allow traveling the forest without disturbing it too much.

This was the village of the Pua tribe, the only population that Puamoku had seen for hundreds of years. The island was outside the boundaries of most maps, no outsider had reached the island in known Pua history, and the Pua themselves were no travelers - while they had boats, they were primarily small bark canoes, used only for fishing. They would rarely venture outside of the cove, and when they did, it was only at times when the fish inside the cove were sparse. The Pua themselves lived their life as it passed and were not overly concerned with their own history - while they had several traditions that were passed down from one generation to the next, they kept no records of things that had passed and left no permanent marks behind, so any knowledge about how the Pua tribe originated had been long since lost. They were a self-sustaining people, living in harmony with the island's nature, not taking more than they could use and using everything they would take. The population of the island barely totalled five hundred, with more children than adults.

More than anything, the Pua were a tribe of hunters. The most important tool to them was the bow, and every Pua child started their archery training at five years old. This basic training took place in groups separated by gender until the age of twelve, when they would instead be assigned a partner based on what skills they had shown during the past seven years. Each pair was put under the watch of an older instructor, and this three-person unit formed the basis of their next six years of training. This pairing ceremony occurred four times a year, on the day after the third full moon since the last ceremony. It was one of the most important events in the life of every Pua child, considered by most to be second only to their coming of age celebration at sixteen.

And this was the day of one such ceremony. Most of the tribe had gathered at the beach to witness it, and in the middle of this group stood a half-circle of six children - four boys and two girls. Five who had had their twelfth birthday since the last ceremony, one who had voluntarily waited three additional moons, as there had been an odd number last time. The majority of pairs consisted of one boy and one girl, but the children themselves could request someone to be paired with. Facing the six children were five older Pua members, of which the two - one man and one woman - that had been responsible for the larger boy and girl groups these six had been part of took center stage. They were dressed in the standard Pua clothing, skirts woven from rush grass and tops made out of thin silk. The clothing did not differ between males and females, but it was more common for the males to eschew the top. The six children also wore the traditional ceremonial clothing of the Pua, a longer sheet of silk wrapped around their shoulders and draping down across their backs almost like a cape, dyed in an irregular rainbow-like pattern. Such rainbow dye was also used for the clothing of the chief and his family, otherwise most Pua clothing was only a single, plain colour.

The male instructor was the first to speak up. He was of average height, with a well-defined build, tanned skin and short black hair.  
"To the six standing before me, you have gone through the first phase of your training, but now it begins anew."  
"Today you will each be paired with one of your tribemates, and with them receive further guidance from one of your elders," the female instructor said. She, too, looked physically fit, slightly taller than the man beside her, with braided hair reaching just below her shoulders. Over her right ear, she wore an ornament consisting of a green flower and a white feather. Starting at age twelve, all Pua women started wearing such an ornament - which was called a lifewing - over their right ear. It was considered a symbol of life and love, and women who had promised themselves to another (even if the man in question was not always aware of this development) would start wearing it over their left ear instead.  
"First I wish to call on Soandi Taeha and Soandi Ageha," the male instructor spoke.  
"We are here," two boys replied in unison. They were nearly identical in several aspects - height, facial features, even their voices were similar. The only visual difference between them was in their black hair, as while both of them wore it in a single braid, Ageha's was at least twice the length of his brother's.  
"The bond you share as twins is stronger than any that we could hope to provide you with. You have demonstrated this to us time and time again, by coming up with strategies and techniques relying on being two that trust each other implicitly. We see no reason to discourage this, and so we have agreed to your request."  
"Our thanks," Taeha said. One of the other instructors, a woman looking to be slightly older than the one in the middle, wearing her white and black lifewing over her left ear, stepped forward.  
"And so, the one who has chosen to continue your training is Nokuva Seresi."  
"Allow me to cultivate your skills," she said.  
"We accept your guidance," the two of them replied.  
"Next, I wish to call on Soanva Miryn," the female instructor said.  
"Yes!" one of the girls replied excitedly. She had long, black hair, and over her right ear, a red flower and blue feather.

Soanva Miryn had always been quite the peculiar girl among the Pua. While the first bow she had constructed at the start of her training was of greater quality than many would achieve with even their third or fourth bow, she was never quite satisfied with the simplicity of it - and so had set out to make something different. After months of experimenting in her spare time, she had created a rudimentary compound bow with a body built from three connected but separately moving segments rather than a single curved piece. Despite less than encouraging comments from the adults of the tribe, she continued searching for ways to improve her bow that would better allow her to utilize the limited strength she had. By the time of her ceremony, she was using one unlike anything the Pua had ever seen, with better aim and distance than many far more experienced than she were able to get from their weapons. But her experimenting hadn't been limited to her bow - she had also turned to her arrows. By studying the different ways to make fire that the Pua knew, she had come up with a mixture that when applied to one of her arrows could be ignited by a spark, something she had added a small mechanism on her bow to do. She hadn't perfected this aspect yet, though, as it didn't always work - sometimes the arrow would not catch fire at all, in which case the prepared arrow was less effective than a regular arrow, and sometimes it would burn too much, reducing the arrow to mostly ash before it could reach its target.

"You are a prodigy with the bow the likes of which Pua has not seen in a long time. Even if all do not agree with your methods, there is no mistaking your skill, even if it relies on methods that you alone understand. For that reason, we believe that pairing you with one skilled in archery that adheres to the regular ways of the Pua would be a mistake."  
"I understand," Miryn replied.  
"I now wish to call on Noandi Emaku," the male instructor said.  
"Present," one of the remaining boys replied. He was the tallest of the children present, with quite the lean build for his age. With the exception of a small, braided ponytail on his left side, his hair was fairly unkempt.  
"You have shown great ability at tracking prey and a good understanding of trapping them, so even if you have always shown more proficiency with the knife than the bow, you have the makings a very capable hunter. Your patience and determination have been admirable in every task you have undertaken, and we believe that you can grow even more with the right partner. This is why we have chosen to pair you with Soanva Miryn."  
"I am humbled by your words," Emaku said as one of the two other instructors stepped forwards - a tall man with a muscular build, with many scars visible on his body. He had short hair and a mostly trimmed beard, and appeared to be the oldest among the instructors present for this ceremony.  
"And so, the one who has chosen to continue your training is Soredi Addoma."  
"Allow me to cultivate your skills," Addoma said.  
"We accept your guidance," Miryn and Emaku replied.  
"And then, I wish to call on Nokudi Kaniya..."

* * *

Under the supervision of Addoma, Miryn and Emaku soon found each other, and not only as training partners. Already fascinated by her engineering and archery skills, it did not take long for Emaku to become completely smitten by Miryn. They did not speak much about it to each other, especially not when Addoma was around, but before even a year of their training together had passed, Miryn had started wearing her lifewing over her left ear. For partnerships consisting of a boy and a girl, that is to say the majority of them, it was more common than not for the two of them to become romantically involved - and after completing this stage of training, marry. Or, as the Pua called it, join together as lifemates.

As could be expected, Miryn and Emaku spent practically all of their time together as time went on. Emaku's tracking and trapping skills in combination with Miryn's extraordinary archery made them into one of the best hunting teams on the island, and Emaku and Addoma were among the few that encouraged Miryn's experimentation with her bow and arrows. Even if some of their elders still considered what she did a breach of Pua tradition, the pair of Emaku and Miryn seemed to be well on their way to be one of the most successful partnerships that the tribe had seen in generations.

Until...

It was in the late summer of the third year after Miryn and Emaku's ceremony, when the weather had started heralding the change of seasons. It had been a particularly breezy day, but the Pua had not considered it anything out of the ordinary. Puamoku was in an area where the weather was prone to swings, especially as new seasons were approaching - and leading up to autumn tended to be the most unpredictable of all. Sea breezes would often be followed by tropical storms, something the Pua were no strangers to. As the breeze picked up in intensity as the night fell, the Pua knew what was likely to come and started sheltering themselves, either in their houses or in small caves scattered around the island. They counted on a loud but ultimately harmless storm the likes of which they had already seen two of this lunar cycle, and so did not do make any further preparations.

But tonight's storm was much more than the Pua had expected. The strong winds howled through the forest, tearing branches off the trees, razing many of the Pua's rope bridges. The sea crashed against the rocky coast, spraying seawater even over the ridge. While some of the Pua's raised huts were swaying in the wind, the inner cove of the island was sheltered by the natural barriers, and so anyone who stayed within the village was not in any real danger, despite the weather.

But those who had been elsewhere when the storm started had more to worry about.

Miryn, Emaku and Addoma had ventured out in a small bark canoe to fish in the cove, as their training now involved survival, to the point where they were only allowed to eat food that they had caught, grown or gathered themselves. They were no strangers to the whims of the sea and the weather, and especially Addoma knew what a storm could result in. They had for the first time during their training gone past the mouth of the cove, which put them at a considerable distance from the safety of the village.  
"Miryn, Emaku..." Addoma said and looked at them, to confirm if they had picked up on the strengthening breeze as well. This could be a good part of their training - it would take them too long to row back before the storm descended upon them, so they would have to come up with a solution fast.  
"We know," Miryn said and nodded at her instructor and partner. Addoma gave a nod of approval back, wordlessly telling them to handle the situation. With all the time they had spent together, Miryn and Emaku barely needed to talk to each other to know what they wanted the other to do, something that was to their advantage when hunting.  
"Here," Emaku said and laid his fishing pole down in the boat. Miryn brought hers in as well, and they had soon lashed the two poles together. Miryn removed the cloth she had been wearing on her upper body and tied it to their frame, creating a makeshift sail. Emaku then used a length of rope to secure one of their oars to the back of the vessel to serve as a rudder.  
"Very good," Addoma said, impressed at how fast they had come up with something, especially given their lack of resources. And just in time, too - the storm had just made its presence clear as the canoe-turned-sailboat started skimming towards the island. But like the rest of his tribe, Addoma had underestimated the strength of tonight's weather. He had thought that if they did not manage to figure out what to do, the worst thing that could happen was that they got a bath and probably lose the fish they had caught, which just was a lesson they had to take. But as he watched Emaku hold on to the oar to steer them and Miryn kneeling in the middle of the canoe, holding on to their improvised sail while trying to keep balance, he noticed that the wind had picked up far faster than he had expected and the waves were already going higher than they usually did. He held on to the sides of the canoe as a sense of dread welled up within him, but there was nothing he could do at this point - any rope they had had already been used by his students, and if he made any movements, it would only serve to unbalance them.

And unbalancing was exactly what Miryn didn't need right now. She stayed as still as she could, acting as the support for their sail, but the canoe was rocking more and more as the waves were assaulting it. Suddenly, just as the canoe touched the entrance to the cove, a strong gust caught the sail. It caused her to lose enough balance that she had to let go with one hand, desperately grasping for the side of the canoe to steady herself.

Her hand never found its goal. Instead, it was met by one of the several swells rolling across the canoe, sweeping her off the side. As she was still holding on to their sail, the combined force of the waves and the powerful wind quickly carried her into the sea, away from the island. She, like all Pua, was a good swimmer - but even someone with another fifteen years of experience would find themselves challenged by what she had been cast into. Emaku let go of the oar, extending his hand towards her, but it was impossible for her to reach it. Addoma lunged himself out of the canoe in an attempt to reach her, but it was far too late. A wave immediately hit him, almost throwing him back inside the canoe. Knowing it was impossible to do more, Emaku pulled him back on board, and knew they had to make a decision fast. They looked in the direction where they had last seen Miryn, but the only thing they spotted was bits of the sail she had been holding, ripped apart by the storm and sea. They looked at each other, and without saying anything knew that preserving two lives was a preferable outcome to losing three. Holding on to each other, they pulled the oar they had been using as a rudder back in, used what rope they had to tie themselves together and used all the strength they had left to brave the storm and row back towards the beach.


	19. Night of the reunion,day of the judgment

_Just as with the previous chapter, this one has too long a title for to handle - so the real name of this chapter is 'The night of the reunion and the day of the judgment'._

* * *

Miryn's disappearance affected Emaku harshly.

For the first few weeks after the incident, he refused to talk to anyone but Addoma. He kept entirely to himself, he would wander off into the forest and be gone for several days before returning, and even though he had been a skilled fisher and avid swimmer before it had happened, now refused to even go near the water. For some time, he even refused to eat fish. Even if he eventually came around on that, his apprehension to approaching the cove remained, and at most he'd stand on the very edge of the beach where it bordered the village.

It was only thanks to Addoma's ceaseless understanding and encouragement that he managed to return to participating in the Pua community at all, but despite insistence from the chief and other tribe elders, he refused to have another partner assigned to him and Addoma was able to convince them that he was still able to be Emaku's instructor. He did more for Emaku during this time than even Emaku's family, but the bonds between partners and between instructor and pupil during their training years were often stronger than even between parent and child - in many ways, the Pua did not put much importance on direct familial relations beyond a spouse, as the tribe in many ways acted as one big communal family.

Miryn's parents were saddened by their daughter's disappearance, but they did not reach out to Emaku or Addoma about it and did not let it affect their daily life in any noticeable way. Emaku did not seek them out either, and while they did interact at times, neither he nor they brought up Miryn when they did.

The first year passed. Emaku's coming of age ceremony was one of the most somber the Pua had ever seen, as it was obvious that something was missing from it - like the majority of the tribe's traditions, it was constructed around the three-person unit they would be part of at sixteen. Normally, there was a half-day-long celebration for the two children that were considered to have entered adulthood that the majority of the tribe participated in, followed by five days of personal celebration held by the families of the two. With Addoma at his side for support, Emaku went through the large celebration while making it clear that he did it for Miryn, but the followup was cut short. While his parents had prepared for the five days of celebration, on the morning of the second day, Emaku wandered into the forest on his own and remained there for the rest of the week.

The second year passed. With her family and the rest of the tribe believing Miryn dead, the elders were insisting on carrying out a funeral ceremony for her, but Emaku and Addoma both refused as they could not accept the idea that she was truly gone - and as her surviving instructor and partner, and more importantly the one that had been closest to her at the time of her supposed demise, Pua tradition dictated that they had to be the ones to put her spirit to rest. Miryn's parents shared the elders' opinion, but elected to not push the subject with Emaku or Addoma.

The third year...

In the thirty-third lunar cycle after the fateful storm, in the middle of a calm autumn night, a small boat landed on the beach of Puamoku. No one saw it approach or make contact, or noticed the figure stepping out of it. The moon was barely visible, and the Pua did not keep any fires or torches lit at night. In general, there was little activity among the Pua at night - if anything, it was for the purposes of hunting nocturnal prey, but even those instances were few and far between. The time when the moon reached its apex was the time that the Pua considered the end of the day, and that meant time to rest.

As such, the Pua tribe was asleep when the figure moved across the beach, up towards the village. It moved silently but quickly and deliberately, as if already having a target in mind. It crossed into the village unnoticed, made its way towards one of the huts and without making any sound climbed up to the platform and entered.

Inside, Noandi Emaku and his family were sleeping. The person who had entered slowly tip-toed over to Emaku and tapped his shoulder.

"Wha..." he started mumbling, but not loud enough for anyone else in the hut to hear. He opened his eyes, and saw a face above him holding a hand over its mouth, to tell him to be silent. A face that Emaku recognized.

Soanva Miryn had returned to Puamoku.

She said nothing, and Emaku understood. She pointed at the door, and as silently as she had come in, the two of them left the hut and wandered into the forest. Without saying a word to each other, they made their way towards a cave that they had used for shelter several times during their training. As it was quite dark, they gathered some branches for firewood along the way to make a campfire as they had done countless times before. Emaku had almost always been the one to get the fire going during their training, but now he didn't even have time to start trying before Miryn produced a flame from seemingly - to Emaku - nowhere and used it to start the fire. Emaku opened his mouth, but his words were interrupted by Miryn embracing him, holding him without saying anything. He soon heard a sniff, and pulled his head back.

"Miryn... you're crying," he stated. It was a new side of her to him, since during their time as partners, he had never seen her cry. Nothing had been able to make her too sad, and she would get angry rather than start crying when she was in pain.  
"Emaku... oh, Emaku..." she spoke and took a step back, letting Emaku see her clearly for the first time in the light of the fire.

To Emaku, she was obviously still his partner, the Pua tribe girl Soanva Miryn. But in many ways, she looked quite different. Her clothes were very far from Pua apparel - she wore black shoes, dark grey shorts, a dark green shirt and a dark grey coat, all made out of materials foreign to the Pua. She had let her hair grow even longer, and while it was still black, it now had a streak coloured dark red as well - and dyeing their hair was an unknown concept to the Pua. Her face seemed to have lost the spark it once had, her eyes appeared almost empty and her expression held an unmistakable hint of sadness.

But despite all of that, there was one thing that above all convinced Emaku that she was still the same girl as three years ago - she still wore her red and blue lifewing over her left ear.

"Emaku..." she repeated and took a deep breath. "Before anything else... I'm going to tell you everything. But you have to promise me..."  
"I'll do anything," Emaku said.  
"You can never tell anyone else about it," Miryn said. "Not even Addoma."  
"I promise," he replied.  
"Thank you," she said and sat down, Emaku following. "When I was thrown out of the canoe... I was pulled underwater, and I was sure that I was going to die..."

* * *

Miryn's return turned out to become a point of contention among the Pua.

While they at first were happy that she turned out to be alive and well, many of the adults in the tribe soon changed their opinion about her. Even though she started wearing Pua clothing again, the overwhelming opinion was that she had abandoned the ways of the tribe. She had brought back a new bow, one not made of wood but of metal, which performed better than any bow that had ever been made on the island. She had completed development of the fire arrow coating, and had even brought another new one with her - one that would cause her arrows to give off a small electrical charge. These were all seen as breaches of tradition, and it did not help her case that many of the younger Pua were impressed with her innovations that she did not hesitate to demonstrate. To many, she appeared to have become a completely different person - one who was not of the island. That she had reached the age of adulthood but not gone through her coming of age ritual was also not viewed favourably.

The only adult of the tribe that still fully considered Miryn one of them and supported her new innovations fully was Addoma. Even Miryn's parents, who had been largely neutral about her inventions before, now looked at their daughter largely with disapproval.

For four days, Miryn returned to her old life the best she could, but her demeanor was still completely different from the excited girl she had once been. With the treatment she got from her parents, Addoma let her stay in his hut, which meant Emaku spent most of his time there as well. However, he did not yet want to resume their training, and wasn't sure that they were ever going to continue - while he never said it, in many ways, he considered Miryn to have surpassed him.

But on the fifth day...

Miryn and Emaku had been out hunting in the forest since early morning. They had resumed producing all their food themselves, and even though they had been apart for so long with both of them improving their skills separately, their cooperation was as if they had never been separated. Thus, they were bringing home more game in less time than they had ever done before.

As they returned to the village, they went to leave their game in Addoma's hut. Addoma was normally not there during the daytime, but now, he was waiting for the two of them. Miryn noticed he looked somewhat distraught as they approached.  
"Miryn..." Addoma started saying, a hint of uncertainty in his voice.  
"Yes?" she replied. "Is... something wrong?"  
"I... don't know. I hope not," he said. "You have been... chief Malaho has called for you. I was asked to bring you to his hut..."  
"What could the chief want with you?" Emaku asked.  
"I have been on the outside," Miryn replied. "There are... many things he might have to say."  
"So are you..."  
"I won't defy the chief," Miryn said. "Will you come with me?"  
"Of course," Emaku replied.  
"I'll come as well," Addoma said with a nod before the three of them headed to the chief's hut. It was located in the middle of the village, and from the outside did not look very different from all other Pua huts apart from being the largest of them. They climbed up to the entrance, and Miryn was the first to step inside. In front of her, in the middle of the hut, she saw - unsurprisingly - the chief, his wife, and his five closest advisors, but somewhat more unexpectedly, her parents were there as well.  
"Soanva Miryn," the chief spoke. "Please stand before me."

Noredi-kai Malaho was an old man, having been chosen as the new chief of the tribe at the age of twenty-one and held the position for the last forty-seven years. He was a staunch traditionalist, having always been set in the old ways of the Pua, believing it to be the only way.

"Understood," Miryn said as she approached. Emaku and Addoma entered after her.  
"What is this about?" Emaku loudly asked as he entered.  
"Noandi Emaku, Soredi Addoma," the chief said. "You may stay and listen, but do not interrupt."  
"Understood," Addoma said and placed a hand on Emaku's shoulder.  
"Soanva Miryn," Malaho said. "What is your age?"  
"I am eighteen," she replied.  
"You are of adult age, but you have not had your coming of age ceremony."  
"What does that-" Emaku started saying, but stopped when Addoma squeezed his shoulder.  
"Can you call yourself a child of Pua?" the chief asked.  
"This is where I was born and this is my home," Miryn replied.  
"You have strayed from the path of the Pua ever since you were a child," he continued. "Your skills with the bow have always been worthy of praise, but the methods that you used to achieve them are not something that is appreciated."  
"I only wished to be better at hunting," Miryn said.  
"Then you should have done so through training," Malaho replied. "And now, after disappearing, you return with a bow that is far from anything that a child of Pua should ever use. In the past, though you went against the traditions of the Pua... we tolerated your behaviour, for we believed that you would see reason as you became an adult. But now, even as you have reached the age of an adult, you did so away from the tribe. You have also brought with you knowledge and items that make it clear to us that you no longer belong on this island."  
"You're... not wrong," Miryn said.  
"Do you wish to speak on your own behalf?"  
"No," she replied. "I have nothing to say that you haven't already told me."  
"Then, there is no other course of action, but we do not make this decision lightly. Our judgment is that you, Soanva Miryn, are no longer a child of Pua, and you may no longer remain on Puamoku. Our decision is unanimous, the sentence is exile!"  
"What?" Emaku shouted.  
"Emak-" Addoma started before Emaku tore himself free from his grasp.  
"You don't know what she's been through!" he said and started moving towards them.  
"Emaku, don't!" Addoma said and reached for Emaku to stop him.  
"That much is true, we don't know," the chief replied. "And as long as she does not tell us, that is how it will remain, and our judgment stays how it is."  
"Miryn, you have to tell them!" Emaku said as Addoma reached him and held onto his arm.  
"No..." she replied without looking at him. "I... am never going to talk about that again."  
"Soandi Yosen, Noreva Sakea," the chief said and looked at Miryn's parents. "Do you wish to speak?"  
"No," Yosen replied. "There is nothing for me to say."  
"The daughter I lost is not the one who returned," Sakea said. "I do not oppose your judgment."  
"Then it is final," Malaho said and clapped his hands together. "Soanva Miryn, you will leave Puamoku on the third dawn! Until then, you are to stay in Soredi Addoma's home, and you may not have any other contact with the tribe. You will take with you all foreign items that you brought back, and you are not allowed to return!"  
Miryn said nothing. She only gave a single nod in the direction of the chief and did not make eye contact with anyone, not even Emaku, as she left the hut. Addoma did not speak either, but looked at the chief and his advisors with clear disgust before leaving as well, dragging Emaku with him. There were no words spoken as they returned to Addoma's hut to start preparing for her journey.

The days passed quickly, and Miryn's exile was known in the entire tribe only hours after the judgment had fallen. Emaku tried to talk to Miryn, but she followed what the chief had said and did not have contact with anyone but Addoma. Emaku kept trying to argue with the chief, but he would not listen. Emaku would not break his promise to Miryn and tell her story, but with how stubbornly set in the old ways Malaho was, he wasn't convinced that it would even change anything. As Addoma was busy helping Miryn, he did not have much contact with Emaku for these days, but Emaku did find some that were willing to listen to him - the same group of younger Pua that had taken an interest in Miryn's innovations...

At the dawn of the day of her exile, Miryn left Addoma's hut wearing the same clothes she had worn when she had returned that night a week ago, including her lifewing. She was carrying her bow, quiver and a cloth bag with her other possessions. Most of the tribe had gathered to watch her leave, but none of them said a word to her as she made her way through the village. As she started wandering down to the beach, she passed Addoma and Emaku, standing next to the chief. Addoma was holding on to Emaku, like he wasn't sure if he was going to try to go with her. She did not look at them as she turned and started walking down towards the beach.

"Miryn!" Emaku shouted after her. She stopped for a moment, but did not turn to look at him.  
"Emaku..." she replied. "It's better if you forget that name..."  
"I could never forget you!"  
"If I am no longer a child of Pua, then I am no longer Soanva Miryn..." she said. "From now on... my name will be Muse."  
"But... that's..." Emaku swallowed and said nothing more, as if he knew what that name meant.

She crossed the beach, walking up to the boat that she had arrived in. While there were no other people on the beach, someone had put some extra oars, a fishing pole, a cloth sail and a leather sack with food and water in the boat. Even if they were exiling her, they did not want to send her to her immediate death, she thought... she put her things in the boat, pushed it out into the water and got in. She picked up two oars and slowly started rowing herself towards the mouth of the cove when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Miryn!" Emaku yelled again as he freed himself from Addoma's grasp and started running towards her. Downwards, out of the village... onto the beach. Across the beach... into the water.  
"Emaku, don't..." she said. The thought had crossed her mind, but she didn't want to make her judgment also his judgment. But...  
"I'll make sure you can come back!" he yelled over her. "If this is what our traditions mean... I'll change them! I'll change the Pua! One day... one day I'll be the chief of the tribe and then you can come back to us!"  
She didn't reply. Emaku's words meant a lot to her, but... after this, after what he had said, with his association with her, she knew that it would be next to impossible for Emaku to ever become the chief of their tribe. But that didn't mean he wouldn't try, and she knew he would do everything he possibly could for her, even when she was gone. She only hoped it wouldn't mean any trouble for him... but he would have Addoma by his side, to keep him in control.

As her boat traveled further and further from the shore, it started becoming too much for her. To be taken from her home a second time, to lose all the people that had been part of her life, especially Emaku and Addoma... as she approached the mouth of the cove, she could still hear Emaku calling out to her, but she did not look back at him.

She did not want him to see that she was crying.

* * *

Several days passed. She did not know where she wanted to go, she only knew where she didn't. As she didn't know too much about navigating, despite having a map and a compass, she was uncertain of her position. She rationed her supplies as best she could, the food was no problem but the water lasted her only a week. If she didn't find any island to resupply on, she would be heading towards certain demise...

Eleven days in, she had found herself having to resort to certain emergency survival measures, but without anything else to drink, even that wasn't going to last. She hadn't even encountered any rain, and while harsh weather wasn't something she wished for, collecting some rain water would at least allow her to stay alive for a while longer.

On the fourteenth day, she had no more food. While she had been able to catch some fish to stretch what she had been given, no more food meant no more bait. She had refrained from rowing too much to save on her energy, and had used the sail to let the winds take her wherever they pleased, as she figured that there wasn't much else she could do as she did not know in which direction any kind of help might lie. As the sun started to disappear behind the horizon, she had not had anything to eat or drink in over twenty-four hours. The sail was still up, but the winds were slow and erratic.

"This is it," she whispered to herself as exhaustion and dehydration got the better of her. She collapsed in her boat, facing downwards. She didn't know what would happen next, and didn't notice the wind starting to pick up.

A few hours later, she felt something was rocking the boat. She was at most half-conscious, and didn't even have the strength to sit up, but it wasn't the wind, and it wasn't the water... she thought it might be some sea monster trying to drag her under, which would at least end it... but it soon stopped as she heard the unmistakeable sound of the boat being pulled up onto land. She felt something grab her shoulder and shake her, then starting to turn her over. Before she could figure out what was actually going on, before she could see anything or anyone apart from the bottom of the boat, she heard a soft male voice speaking.

"Are you alright, miss?"

 _To be continued in Volume 03: Standing united_


	20. Conquer

**_A word from the author_**

 _And after almost exactly a month since the end of volume two, we continue our journey!_

 _So please to enjoy volume three of Pure Corruption, which is named "Standing united"!_

* * *

Atlas had noticed it.

The arrow came flying towards him, and he raised his right hand. James, still getting his leg crushed under Atlas's foot, was relieved that Muse was apparently fine... and terrified that Atlas knew she was still alive. He'd stop this arrow, quickly kill James - a fast and painless demise was probably the best he could hope for at this point, he figured - and then go berserk on Muse. He'd go after Mirise next, rally the town guard, and they'd all die here. Even if Markus and Rink had succeeded, if Atlas was left alive he'd probably take over the island, and Kurita would be even worse off than before. Some heroes they turned out to be.

"Seems like I wasn't thorough enough," Atlas growled, and caught the arrow in his right hand with a swift motion... and dropped it with an exclamation of discomfort as the arrow caught fire the instant he closed his fist around it. James felt the weight on his leg lessen, but not enough to free himself, as another arrow showed up. This time, Atlas used his anchor to block it... and as he struck it in flight, it gave off a small bolt of electricity, striking Atlas's left hand. He winced, but held on to his anchor, as two more arrows came for him. This time, he decided to not take any chances, and dodged them by leaning backwards instead of blocking.

This gave James the room he needed, as Atlas was so preoccupied with avoiding the arrows that he did not spend any additional effort on making sure James was still trapped. He withdrew his leg from under Atlas, and as he started sweeping with his anchor to strike arrows out of the sky - some more catching fire, some more giving off bolts, some doing nothing - James managed to wiggle free, and this was probably the best chance he was ever going to get as it looked like Atlas prepared to advance towards Muse.

He quickly reached behind his back, pulled out the pistol Markus had given him, took aim, and fired.

The bullet hit Atlas's right kneecap. He screamed out in pain as he fell down into a crouching position - right knee and left foot on the ground - and instinctively looked down at James, still holding the smoking gun and not being in much of a position to move.

But Muse had, of course, not let up her attack. With Atlas unable to either catch, block, or dodge the next arrow, it found its target.

James didn't spot it until it had stopped, half of it now embedded in the right side of Atlas's skull. Atlas started gurgling, made a few erratic motions with his right hand, but somehow still held on to his anchor. He wasn't looking at either of them right now, just stared into the space in front of him.

Then another arrow came, this time piercing Atlas's neck.

He started coughing up spurts of blood as he lurched forwards, planting his left knee on the ground as well before his entire body tipped over. He was still holding his anchor tightly as he fell forwards, James only narrowly avoiding getting crushed. With his right leg still severely damaged, he was in no position to move, but Atlas lay even more still. No movement at all, not even a single breath. Even though this had been their goal, it took a few moments for James to take in the situation as he heard Muse descend to the ground and start walking towards him.

Atlas was dead.

* * *

Markus looked at the bullet hole in the door next to him. Galt had - surprisingly quickly and silently - pulled out a gun from his desk and fired at Markus. He had noticed it in time to dodge and instinctively drawn his swords.

"You believe you can take me that easily?" Galt said. "I may be old, but I can still deal with the likes of you!"  
"You're not getting out of this room alive," Markus said and pointed one of his blades towards Galt.  
"You forget who I am," Galt stated as he started reloading his gun. Markus made an assault towards him, but he crouched under his desk and fired again as he reemerged moments later. Markus just managed to block it with one of his blades, and it ricocheted away from both of them.  
"I know too well," Markus said and did a leap and a slash towards Galt before he had the time to reload again. Galt used the gun to block the strike and deflected it away from him with a push, letting go of the pistol. He started backing away as Markus climbed over the desk to attack again, seeing Galt grab his cane. Markus drew his other sword and swung both of them vertically towards Galt, who held up the cane towards them. Markus figured it would last to block a strike or two, and then he'd have him.

But rather than the sound of metal striking wood, there was a clang. Markus had to reel black as his swords shuddered.  
"How long have you planned this, doctor Flint?" Galt asked with a sinister smirk.  
"I have... ever since you killed my father!" Markus replied.  
"That's, what, ten years?" Galt said.  
"Eleven," Markus stated.  
"Eleven years... for eleven years you've underestimated me," Galt said. "Ragnar... the rest of the town guards... the guard dogs, the bodyguards... they're good barriers and extra hands, but let me make one thing very clear."  
"What's that?" Markus asked through gritted teeth.  
"The one who controls this island is _me_!" he exclaimed and swung his cane towards Markus, who jumped backwards. "How long can you keep that up? You knew I was a Marine Commodore, but did you ever bother finding out how I was fighting? Or did you assume I was too old for that now, and that I didn't even have any weapons?"  
"A short iron staff..." Markus replied.  
"There are so many ways you can conceal a weapon," Galt said. "Like a thin layer of wood around an iron core."  
"Shut up!" Markus said and started slashing wildly in Galt's direction, but he managed to avoid or block all of the attacks. Markus's body was shaking from striking the iron pole, and Galt made a stabbing motion towards him with the cane. Markus managed to dodge it by leaning backwards, almost dropping to the floor, and then really did have to drop and roll away as Galt brought the cane downwards towards him.  
"Remember that _I'm_ the one who subdued the Shield Pirates!" Galt said with a laugh as he watched Markus get to his feet. "What did you _think_ I controlled Ragnar with?"  
"I don't care," Markus said and clenched his fists tighter around his swords. This had been quite a miscalculation, but Galt was still an old man... he'd run out before Markus did. He had to. But he'd have to get him to that point, or get an opening... that cane was the entire problem, if only he could get Galt away from that...

Markus realized, for the first time since he had encountered those three, that he didn't have a plan at the moment. Everything else had been carefully considered, everyone else had been given the tasks they were suited for, but he... he had insisted on taking out Galt himself, for a personal vendetta... Rink was busy with the bodyguards, and the others were far away, so he couldn't count on any assistance. Plan or no plan, he had to end this. He looked around the room. Nothing he could use. All he had was his two blades, and his own pistol. He wouldn't get the time to reload, so he had to make that one shot count. But he couldn't let Galt see him draw the gun... he would need one hand free for that, and Galt would know he was up to something if he dropped or sheathed one of his swords. So the only option was... that.

"You're not getting out of this room alive!" Markus repeated, this time yelling it, and threw the sword he had been holding in his right hand with a vertical spin towards Galt.  
"Throwing away your weapons?" Galt asked as he effortlessly struck it with his cane, making it fly off to the side.  
"Yaaah!" Markus shouted as he rushed towards Galt, holding his remaining sword in both hands, pointing downwards, preparing for an upwards swing. Galt held his cane out as Markus brought the blade upwards, striking the cane and holding onto the sword tightly, pushing as hard as he could. Galt grabbed onto his cane with his other hand and pushed downwards, causing the blade to move back down. Suddenly, Markus let go of the blade and took a quick step backwards. As Galt was pushing downwards with all the force he could muster, he briefly lost his balance and planted the cane into the ground to catch himself before moving his head to look at Markus.  
"How are you going to fight with no-" he started saying.

 _Bang_.

The very instant he could see Markus, a gunshot interrupted his words. A red stain started growing on his shirt, right over his heart. He stared at Markus as he started shaking, and slowly sunk towards the ground with his cane still in hand. He hit the floor without as much as a cough as blood started slowly trickling out from under him. Markus looked at Galt's body, the smoking gun still in his hand and breathing heavily.  
"Age gets to us all, Commodore Galt," he whispered. He had done it... he had won. He had avenged his father, and as long as the others had succeeded in their tasks, saved Kurita... hopefully. He recollected his swords, and while he was at it, picked up Galt's cane as well. Partly as a trophy, proof of what he'd done... but maybe it could become useful, too.

* * *

Muse looked at Atlas's body as she approached James, who had managed to sit up.  
"Is he really..." she started asking.  
"Dead as a doornail," James replied. "Nice shot. And..."  
"What?" Muse asked.  
"Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm glad you're alive," James said.  
"Same to you," Muse replied without looking at him.  
"More to the point..."  
"Yes?  
"Why didn't you tell us he used that chain too?" James asked in an annoyed tone. "Did you actually _want_ me dead?"  
"We didn't know," Muse replied. "We've never seen him do that before. We've... never actually seen Atlas fight before, so..."  
"And why didn't you use those... whatever the hell those arrows were earlier?"  
"I didn't want him to know I had them... since he kept catching them when I fired single arrows, I wanted him to think he could always do that..."  
"And why didn't you tell _me_ about them?"  
"Then you would have expected me to use them more."  
"Damn right I would!"  
"You had your job... and you did it well," Muse said.  
"Being told I'm good bait doesn't really seem like a compliment," James replied.  
"It wasn't," Muse stated. "It was a statement of fact."  
"You still have no intention to be a bit cheerful? We did win, after all."  
"I did what I had to," Muse said as she started walking away. "Let's leave..."  
"Right, James replied as he started standing up, but the moment he put any weight at all on his left leg, he felt an intense pain and fell to the ground again. "Oh ow, oh god, that stings..."  
"What?"  
"I think he broke my leg... I'm gonna need some help here," James said and raised his left arm towards Muse.  
"Ugh... fine," she replied as she walked over and crouched next to him. "Just until we get to your ship."  
"That's all I need," James said as he laid his arm around Muse's shoulders and with her help managed to get up, standing only on his other leg. With Muse as support for James, the two of them begun their unsteady walk towards the entrance back into the city where they had left Mirise. Since no other town guards had come to interfere, Mirise had either already won or was still fighting, but as they heard no sounds of battle at all and saw two people just sitting on the ground in front of them as they entered, it was pretty clear it was the former. One of them was obviously the disguised Mirise, the other... well, he was wearing a town guard uniform, so it wasn't hard to guess.

Mirise stood up and faced the two of them as she saw them slowly approach her. She smiled underneath her mask.  
"All done?" she asked as they closed in.  
"Somehow," James said with a minor grunt. "Who's your friend?"  
"The name's Taggart," he said without moving from his spot.  
"Vice-captain of the town guard," Mirise replied.  
"Well, congratulations on your promotion," James said.  
"So Atlas is..." Taggart said.  
"Atlas is dead," Muse stated quite matter-of-factly. "If you have something to say about that, we're ready to continue."  
"What are you-" James started saying, but was interrupted by Taggart.  
"Guard chief Atlas was attacked by an unknown assailant..." he said, still not making any moves. "I was in pursuit, but was unable to provide help in time, as the one chasing Atlas was not alone. Sadly, I was unable to identify any of the attackers."  
"So... you're just letting us go?" Mirise asked.  
"If I couldn't even defeat you, how would I be able to defeat those that felled Atlas?" Taggart asked with a smile, not expecting a reply. "I will take upon myself the duty of telling the citizens exactly what occurred here tonight. But I don't know what became of you or your companions... miss Plague."  
"...Plague?" James turned to Mirise and asked with a raised eyebrow as they continued towards the docks.  
"Don't ask," Mirise replied. "So how'd you do?"  
"Leg hurts like the dickens, but otherwise decent," James replied.  
"Markus can look at that," Muse said.  
"If he and Rink were successful," James said.  
"Now who's being the encouraging one?" Muse asked.  
"Just saying," James replied. "We probably had the most problems anyway..."

* * *

Markus stepped out of Galt's office, his swords back in their sheaths and Galt's cane in his left hand. As he walked towards the stairs, he saw Rink peering down the corridor, half of her body down the stairs. She nodded towards him and looked back down again, to make sure none of her victims were about to wake up. Markus joined her in walking down, spotting the two bodies on the floor.  
"Any problems?" he asked her.  
"None," she replied and lifted her mask up. "They never knew what hit them. Literally."  
"So are they..."  
"Just out cold. Didn't seem to be any point in doing more."  
"I agree," Markus replied. "The less loss of life, the better... but..."  
" 'But Galt had to die', right?" Rink asked.  
"That would be the gist of it," Markus answered.  
"I was slightly worried when I heard that gunshot and a body hit the floor," Rink said. "Looks like there was no need for that, though..."  
"Actually, it wasn't as easy as I had thought it would be... the old guy still had a lot of fight in him," Markus said and looked down at the cane in his hand. "But... in the end..."  
"Either way, we should probably split," Rink said and lowered her mask again. "And hope the others are done."  
"Agreed," Markus replied with a nod before they left the manor. Inside, Andres and Francis would still be unconscious for the majority of the following hour (and tied up with their own wire), and Taggart directed the town guard to dealing with what happened to Atlas before anything else, so it would be a little while before what occurred inside Galt's residence was discovered. But when it was, they would find that in Galt's office, next to the dead body of Kurita's mayor, there was a paper on the floor. A paper weighed down by Galt's right hand.

A paper on which two words had been written in blood.

A paper with the words 'MARKUS FLINT'.


	21. Now that Kurita can live

"Seems like it's just a stable fracture and not fully broken," Markus said. "You were lucky."  
"Lucky's not really the word I'd use about being trampled by a guy over twice my size," James said as he looked down on his left leg stretched out on the table in _Cassandra_ 's cabin, with a plastic spread underneath it. Markus was standing next to the table, squeezing various parts of James's left leg below the knee to figure out how damaged it was. "But I guess Muse got him away from me before he cracked it too much..."  
"Well, we should get a cast on this to be safe, and it should be healed soon enough," Markus told him and put some rolls of bandage on the table. "I'm gonna need some water," he told Rink, who was sitting on the stairs leading down into the cabin, watching Markus and James. Muse had elected to stay outside, and Mirise was busy trying to plot some kind of course after their hasty exit from Kurita.

Markus and Rink had reached _Cassandra_ a full fifteen minutes before the other three, and as soon as James had been laid down on a mattress in the cabin, Mirise had, with Muse's assistance, steered them away from the island and gotten them out into open waters. Not many even saw them leaving, and no one paid any specific attention to them. While Mirise figured that Taggart would delay it for at least a little while, people would eventually find out what they did even if they hopefully wouldn't find out who did it. Their first stop had certainly been something, at least, but Mirise hoped that they wouldn't get that much excitement at _every_ island they landed on.

Rink stepped out on deck with an empty bucket in hand. Muse was sitting down next to the cabin door, tinkering with or cleaning her bow - Rink wasn't sure what, with how weird she found that thing. She didn't know much about weapons.

"So..." Muse begun. "How's the leg looking?"  
"He'll be fine," Rink replied as she walked over to the edge of the boat and leaned over to fill up the bucket. "Wasn't even broken. He told me about the fight you had with that big guy, and from what I heard you both performed quite well."  
"What about you?"  
"Those bodyguards were nothing," Rink said. "I think I had the easiest job."  
"With those powers of yours..."  
"Devil powers are good to have but they're never the answer to everything," Rink replied as she opened the door back inside. "It's not always easy... and not being able to swim is kind of a bother."  
"I can imagine," Muse said as Rink disappeared into the cabin and closed the door behind her. "Here's the water," she said as she descended the stairs and put the bucket on the table.  
"Good," Markus said and started unrolling the bandages. "Could you hold his leg up for me?"  
"Like this?" Rink said and raised James's left leg a bit.  
"Ow! Be careful with that!" James exclaimed.  
"Right, right, sorry," Rink said.  
"That'll do nicely," Markus said as he dipped a length of bandage into the bucket and started wrapping it around the leg. A few rolls later, James's left leg was covered from just below the knee to the ankle. The freshest bandages were still dripping somewhat, but the plaster was drying and hardening quickly. "That should do it."  
"Now what?" James asked.  
"Now we wait for it to heal," Markus said. "Should be a couple of weeks, probably."  
"Now you get off the table," Rink said.  
"So can I walk now, or..."  
"No, no, you have to avoid putting any weight on that leg until it's healed," Markus replied.  
"So how am I going to get around?"  
"We'll have to get you some crutches, but I don't have any with me," Markus said and looked around. "We'll get some on the next island... until then, well..."  
"Until then, what?" James asked.  
"You'll just have to keep still for the most part, but I guess... you could use this if you absolutely have to move until then, maybe?" Markus said and picked up Galt's cane that he had left standing against the cabin wall. James grabbed it and looked at it. It wasn't much longer than his leg, but...  
"Well, fine," he said.  
"And now you get off the table," Rink repeated. "I'll make us some dinner and then I think we all need a good night's sleep."  
"Yeah, you're going to have to help me with that," James said as he started shifting around a little, obviously not used to having his leg locked like this.  
"Fine," Rink said and turned to Markus. "Let's lift him down..."  
"Right," Markus said. "We just have to keep his leg straightened..."  
"One and... two," Rink said as they picked James up and put him down on the wooden bench to the left of the table, his leg stretched out on it. Markus rolled up the plastic spread he had put on the table and put it back in his bag, along with any other equipment he had used.  
"So what's on the menu?" Markus asked Rink as she went over to the kitchen corner of the cabin. It was situated immediately to the right of the stairs when entering the cabin, and consisted mostly of a wooden bench with cupboards over and under it, as well as a small cast iron stove with two hot plates and a small oven compartment.  
"Onion soup," Rink replied. "You can come help me slice the onions. I understand you know a thing or two about cutting."  
"Sure thing," Markus replied and joined Rink. She got a pot and a cutting board out of the cupboards, as well as a few onions that she handed over to Markus. He got a knife from the knife block (one of several additions to the kitchen that Rink had made before they left Avasine) standing on the bench and started cutting as Rink lit the fire in the stove, before she returned back out to get some things from the storage space under the front deck.

By now, Mirise had joined Muse at the front of the ship. She was holding a folded map under her arm and was looking at the night sky through a sextant.  
"Any progress?" Rink asked.  
"I think so," Mirise replied without looking at her. "I _think_ we're on a proper course, but I won't know for sure until the sun goes up. How's James?"  
"He'll live," Rink said and opened the hatch in the middle of the deck. "He won't be walking properly on his own for a while though."  
"That's good, at least," Mirise said and lowered her instrument to look at her map again, but looked over at Rink as she crouched down in the storage first. "Oh, are you making dinner? I was getting a bit hungry."  
"After what we've done tonight I think we all are," Rink replied from below.  
"You want any help?" Mirise asked as she studied her map for a bit before folding it back up.  
"I already put Markus to work," Rink answered as she came back up holding a bottle of wine, a small bag of flour and a few other assorted ingredients. "There's not really room for more than two people in that corner we call a kitchen anyway. You focus on making sure we're going the right way, I'll call you when it's done."  
"I'm done for tonight anyway," Mirise said and folded her map back up. "I'll come inside."  
"If you want to," Rink said and looked over at Muse. "You coming as well?"  
"I'll stay out a little longer, thanks," Muse replied. "Just tell me when it's time to eat..."  
"Sure thing," Rink said as she went back into the cabin, Mirise following.  
"So what are we having?" she asked.  
"Soup," Rink answered as she placed her ingredients on the bench and dropped a lump of butter into the pot. "Done with those?"  
"Just about," Markus replied with a sniff and tears in his eyes.  
"You okay?" Mirise asked.  
"Oh, yeah, it's just onions," Markus said with a chuckle.  
"Oh," Mirise said and sat down at the table, across from James. "How are you doing?"  
"I've been better," he replied. "And I've been worse."  
"So, um... how was your fight with Atlas, anyway?"  
"It was... something, all right," James replied. "I thought we were done for at least twice..."  
"But you won," Mirise replied.  
"Yeah, somehow... I still can't believe we actually did that."  
"It was for a good cause."  
"Good cause or not, it almost got me killed."  
"I guess that... when you want to do the right thing..."  
"It's not always the safe thing to do," James filled in. "It's something you have to learn."  
"You... don't consider it my fault, do you?"  
"What, the leg? Nah, don't worry about it," James said. "You wanted to help, and I'm pretty sure that even without you Rink would have roped me into it anyway. Don't get me wrong, it's good that you want to do the right thing, but sometimes self-preservation has to come first, y'know? Being out on a journey like this... it's not going to be like your Avasine life."  
"I've understood that," Mirise said with a nod.  
"You're not regretting coming with us, do you?"  
"Oh, not at all," Mirise said. "You're right... I do have a lot to learn about this kind of life. But I want to learn, and being around people like you two, and mister Flint and miss Muse... I'm sure I'll figure it out."  
"So anyway, you seem to have gotten out of your thing unharmed... whatever it was you did."  
"I fought mister Taggart," Mirise said. "It wasn't a long fight, but... he was strong."  
"You seem to have come to some sort of agreement, given that you weren't really doing anything when we found you," James said.  
"We... talked," Mirise said. "He cares for the island... I think he understood what we were doing and why. If there's someone that's going to make sure that the island is alright after all that... it's him. I'm sure of it."  
"We can at least hope," Markus said from the kitchen. "Kurita's going to need someone to hold it together... and hopefully... it will be someone who cares."

* * *

 _Cassandra_ hadn't been built to accommodate five people, and it showed. Even without James taking up a whole bench on his own, they would have had to bring in the storage chest for someone to sit on (currently shared by Mirise and Muse) and there wasn't a whole lot of room left on the table with bowls and glasses of water and wine (whatever was left in the bottle Rink had used for the soup) for all of them.

"This is quite delicious," Markus stated after a few spoonfuls. "I didn't know you were a cook too!"  
"I'm far from being a cook," Rink, sitting next to him, replied with a chuckle. "I just... like cooking."  
"You have to have learned it somewhere," James said. "Everything you've made so far has been really good."  
"Well, there's... I used to travel on a ship with a larger crew and I was on kitchen helping duty a lot," Rink explained. "So I picked up a few things there, and I keep some cookbooks around... I didn't cook much while I lived in Avasine, though. Sometimes they'd let me use the hotel kitchen when there weren't any guests, but with the salary I had I could afford to eat out every day... or, y'know, I'd just eat at the hotel."  
"Well, your cooking's great anyway," James said and continued eating.  
"Agreed," Mirise said. "I can't cook this well."  
"You chose the right traveling partners," Markus said with a nod towards James.  
"I don't know if that's true all the time," James replied and looked down on his leg.  
"Hey," Rink said.  
"But they're certainly interesting," James continued with a smile. "And the good has outweighed the bad so far."  
"So how long until the next island, anyway?" Markus asked Mirise.  
"Four days, I think," she replied.  
"That eager to get away from us?" Rink asked.  
"The sooner the better," Muse added.  
"Actually..." Markus said and looked at James. "I was thinking... maybe it's for the best if I stick around until your leg has healed fully."  
"I don't know if-" James begun.  
"Is that really necessary?" Muse asked.  
"It's not a serious fracture, but it could get worse if you're not careful..." Markus said.  
"I don't mind you staying, but it's James's ship," Rink said.  
"We're friends already," Mirise said. "So..."  
"Rather than that, there's..." James said and looked at Muse.  
"I don't want to stay either," she replied to his unspoken statement.  
"Well... you don't have to stay," Markus said. "You made a promise to me, but... we've taken care of Galt."  
"But..." Muse started.  
"Okay, okay," Rink said, as if to interrupt the argument that hadn't really started yet. "It's been a long and exhausting day for all of us... let's eat up and then sleep on it. We'll talk about it in the morning."  
"I agree," Markus said and continued eating, with the rest of the meal taking place in silence. They emptied the pot, cleared the table (leaving doing the dishes to the next day) and started preparing for the night - which was something they had not thought much about until now...

"Well, he's not sleeping in the hammock with that leg," Rink said and nodded towards James after having rolled out her mattress. Mirise was sitting on hers, having changed into her pyjamas already.  
"Absolutely not," Markus said. "You only have those two mattresses?"  
"Yep, for me and Mirise," Rink answered. "So..."  
"I guess... I'll take the hammock, then?" Markus said.  
"I guess James can take mine," Mirise said and stood up. "We'll figure this out."  
"We'll just have to share," Rink said with a shrug and a smile. "I've always got room for one more, but I guess there's three of us."  
"Don't worry about me," Muse said. She had wrapped a weaved blanket around herself and sat down in the corner on the other side of the cabin.  
"You're going to sleep like that?" Rink asked and raised her eyebrow.  
"Why not?" Muse replied.  
"Well, whatever makes you happy," Rink said.  
"I don't think anything does," James offered.  
"Hush, James," Rink said. "Well, I assume you need help to get into bed now too."  
"That... would be appreciated."  
"Here goes," Rink said as she and Markus lifted James down onto the mattress. He quickly closed his eyes as Rink started changing into her nightgown before laying herself down as well.

It didn't take long until most of them were sleeping soundly - Mirise in between James and Rink on Mirise and Rink's combined mattresses, Markus in James's hammock and Muse in her corner. The only one still awake was James, his sleep being delayed by still not being used to the feeling of the cast on his leg. What they had done over the last couple of hours was finally sinking in... it wasn't the kind of thing he had expected to partake in during this journey, but if what Markus had said was true... Kurita would be better off thanks to them. Mirise had been right - it _was_ for a good cause, and even if it was better if nobody else knew he had been part of it, James still felt a bit proud for having done it. Maybe there was something to this whole doing-the-right-thing business, after all.


	22. While the sun rises

Muse was the first one to wake up. She quietly left the cabin and walked out on the front deck just as the sun was colouring the horizon orange. She had been sleeping in the same clothes she wore the day before, minus her coat, socks and shoes, so she removed her camisole and took a deep breath of the morning breeze as she faced the dawn. It had been a long time since she was last out to sea, and even if she had some mixed feelings about it given her prior outings, she had always appreciated the mornings. The air was usually so much better out here than on a populated island.

This part, she could get used to if she were to stay on board along with Markus. Some others... she didn't think she could, but she wasn't entirely sure why.

"You're up early," came a voice from behind her. She turned towards the cabin and saw Rink come out and close the door behind her, still wearing only her nightgown, evidently not having done anything to her hair since yesterday morning, holding her pipe in her hand.  
"Same to you," Muse replied.  
"First time on this boat someone wakes up before me."  
"With that snoring, I'm not surprised," Muse said.  
"He's not actually snored like that before," Rink replied. "But he usually doesn't sleep on his back, either."  
"Right..."

Muse sat down with her back against _Cassandra_ 's railing. Rink sat down to the left of her and lit her pipe. They watched the sun make its way over the horizon, with the only sounds coming from their breathing, from the water, and from the cabin.

"By the way..." Muse eventually started saying and turned her head to look at Rink, with her eyes turning upwards.  
"Yes?" Rink replied and looked back at her, with her eye turning downwards.  
"Your hair looks terrible."  
"So? You're half naked."  
"So?"  
"My point exactly," Rink said as she turned back and closed her eyes. Leaning backwards, she took a drag on her pipe and exhaled a small cloud of smoke upwards. They fell silent for a while again, until the cabin door opened and Mirise stepped out, still in her pyjamas.  
"Good morning," she said to the two of them. "Anything going on?"  
"Not caring about our appearance," Rink said with a smirk and tapped the deck next to where she was sitting. "Wanna join?"  
"Why not?" Mirise replied and sat down next to her. "Did you sleep well?"  
"Yeah," Muse said.  
"Like a log," Rink said. "Yesterday was nuts."  
"You said it," Mirise replied. "I've... never done anything like that before."  
"I've been in fights," Rink said. "But never been involved in... I guess that was more or less a coup d'état, except Markus didn't want to seize power."  
"A liberation," Muse said. "I've... been part of something similar before."  
"What were you even doing before you joined up with him?" Rink asked.  
"I... don't like talking about it," Muse replied.  
"That's fair," Rink said and resumed her smoking.  
"Well, the sun's where I expected it, at least," Mirise said. "Still pretty sure we're headed the right way."  
"Where are we going?" Rink asked.  
"An island called Garlan," Mirise replied. "It was the best option."  
"Hm..." Rink said. "Garlan, huh... that's..."  
"You know of it?" Mirise asked.  
"I know it's the location of one of West Blue's Marine strongholds," Rink explained. "But I've not been there personally."  
"It shouldn't be a problem, right?" Mirise said.  
"I hope not," Rink replied.  
"We shouldn't have anything to worry about," Muse said.  
"Yeah, you're probably right," Rink said. "So, Mirise..."  
"Yeah?"  
"Breakfast'll wait until everyone's awake, but... tea?"  
"I can do that," Mirise replied and stood up. "Do you want a cup too, miss Muse?"  
"Yeah, sure," Muse answered.  
"Well then," Mirise said and entered the cabin, soon coming back out again with a pot to fill it with water.  
"You can cook like that but can't make tea?" Muse asked Rink.  
"I don't want to make tea, so I never learned how," Rink said.  
"Really."  
"Yeah, I don't like tea," Rink replied.  
"...so... then why-"  
"Because I want to drink tea."  
"Why?"  
"I have my reasons."  
"Fair enough."  
"What about you?"  
"About what?"  
"Do you like tea?"  
"Yes," Muse replied. "But I don't drink it that often."  
"Also, I've been meaning to ask..."  
"What?"  
"What's with that feather thing?" Rink asked and pointed at Muse's ear with her pipe. "You didn't even take that off when you went to sleep."  
"It's a memento of my home," Muse replied. "And of... someone I knew."  
"So you wear it in memory of a past that you make it sound like you don't even want to remember?"  
"It's more complicated than that, but... more or less," Muse answered. "Where I come from, we call it a lifewing."  
"Sounds nice," Rink replied. "So does it mean anything, or..."  
"Yes..."  
"But nothing you want to talk about?"  
"If a girl wears it a certain way it means she's promised herself to a boy," Muse said.  
"So the way you have it..."  
"Not telling."  
"Fine."  
"Anyone in your life?"  
"Not... not currently, no," Rink said. "During my time in Avasine, I had my share of one night stands, some more than once, but nothing more serious than that..."  
"Sounds like you were popular," Muse noted.  
"I had a lot of fans," Rink said. "I... had a reputation, I guess."  
"Do you miss it?"  
"My reputation?"  
"Your popularity. Your fans."  
"Eh," Rink said with a shrug. "I left because I needed something different. I mean, I haven't even been gone a week yet... pretty sure they miss me more than I miss them."  
"Harsh."  
"But true," Rink said as Mirise came back out of the cabin.  
"Well, the water's heating up," Mirise said. "What kind of tea do you want?"  
"Surprise me," Rink replied.  
"I don't care," Muse said.  
"Sure thing," Mirise said and sat down next to them again. "Nice morning, isn't it?"  
"I like it," Muse said.  
"It's so calm... what we did yesterday feels so far away."  
"I know what you mean," Rink replied.  
"Yeah..." Mirise said and looked towards the rising sun.

Twenty minutes later, the tea had been consumed, and the three women were sitting on the deck in silence, looking out over the ocean. Rink was still puffing on her pipe, but other than that, not much was happening. Until...

"Well, I'd say they've slept enough," Rink said and turned to her right. "Muse, can you go wake up James?"  
"Why me?"  
"Why not?"  
"Fine," Muse said and stood up.  
"And now we wait," Rink said with a smirk and looked over at Mirise, who was looking at Rink with judgment on her face. "What?"  
"You're mean."  
"I'm nice."  
"Pffff, right."  
"Hey, I'm sending a topless girl to wake him up."  
"Yeah, but-" Mirise said before Rink held up a finger in front of her face.  
"Three... two... one..." she said before they heard a shout from the cabin.  
" _Gah!_ " exclaimed the exasperated voice of James, followed by a slightly more muffled but still highly audible exclamation of "Put some clothes on!"  
"You have to admit," Rink said while snickering, "it's pretty funny how much of a prude he is."  
"Still mean," Mirise said but couldn't help but let out a small giggle. "But okay, maybe a _little_ funny."

* * *

"Thanks for the breakfast," Markus said as he ate the last of his bread. While James's exclamation had woken him up, he hadn't commented on it beyond telling Muse good morning as she had left the cabin. She had put a top back on, and Rink had gotten her hair a bit more under control (otherwise, she said, she'd get hair in her mouth while eating), but they hadn't done anything further about their appearance yet. Mirise was still in her pyjamas, but James and Markus were already dressed. Technically for James, at any rate - because of the leg, all he had done when going to sleep was take off his shirt. So, Markus was the only one who had changed into fresh clothes for the day.  
"Thanks," Muse said and stood up. "It was... good."  
"Well, that's that," Rink said and looked at the piled up bowls on the kitchen counter. "And I guess I should do something about the dishes..."  
"I'll help you," Mirise said.  
"That would be appreciated," Rink replied as she started clearing the table. "Should probably get dressed first, though."  
"Could you please do that outside?" James asked.  
"Fine."  
"I'm going to wash off," Muse said and got a towel and some soap from her bag before following Rink and Mirise, carrying some clothes and the dishes, outside.  
"You're lucky you can take a bath here," Rink said as Muse closed the door behind her.  
"I can see it being a bother," Muse said and started undressing. Rink did the same, which is to say she took her nightgown off. Mirise quickly changed into her regular clothes, but Rink stopped at dressing herself on the lower body (and staying barefoot) for the time being. She filled up a bucket with water as Muse, now wearing nothing, walked up to the edge of the boat. She climbed over the railing and slowly submerged her body, while still holding on to the boat with one arm. She used her other hand to splash water on the parts of herself that were still above the surface, and switched arms after a short while. She climbed back up, seeing Mirise and Rink sitting on the deck with a bucket of water between them, Rink washing and Mirise drying the dishes off.  
"How's the water?" Mirise asked.  
"Cold," Muse replied as she picked up the soap from the deck and started scrubbing her body. "Like I want it."  
"I prefer warm baths," Rink said. "Though a cold shower's good for waking up. And for hangovers."  
"I wouldn't know," Muse said.  
"Never had a hangover?"  
"Never had problems waking up," Muse replied. "Or had hangovers... I don't drink alcohol."  
"Oh."  
"We didn't have it on the island where I grew up, so I'm not used to it... and I haven't liked the taste when I've tried it."  
"I can understand that," Rink said. "I like drinking, but you kind of have to get used to it."  
"Is that so," Muse said and got back into the water to rinse off. She still held on to the boat, and closed her eyes as she let the water envelop her and clean her body. Before she had had the time to get especially relaxed, however, she heard a splash close to her and felt some water hit her face right before the small wave that had been created. As she opened her eyes, she saw Mirise's head emerge from the water in front of her. "Are you sure you should-"  
"No need to worry about _her_ ," Rink said from above Muse as she emptied the bucket. "It's kind of freaky how good she is at swimming."  
"Huh," Muse said and looked at Mirise effortlessly moving through the water. "I see what you mean..."  
"So no need to worry about drowning with her around," Rink said as she filled the bucket back up with water. "I'll borrow your soap."  
"Go ahead," Muse replied and made sure to wash all the soap off her body before climbing back up. Rink was giving herself a quick upper body cleaning, and Mirise was still swimming alongside the boat.

The two of them were interesting people, Muse thought as she started drying herself off. She hadn't had much time to get to know them, but she already found herself enjoying their company. They weren't like anyone else she had known... in fact, the way they acted somewhat reminded her of herself in her younger years. She didn't know if they had been through anything like she had been, but if they had, they didn't show it or let it bother them.

For the last two years, Markus had been her only real friend... but these two had been so accepting of her, not making any demands, not expecting anything from her. They didn't know much about her, but they didn't seem to mind that she wouldn't tell them.

Maybe staying on this boat a bit longer would be worth it, she thought - and for the first time in two years, Muse briefly smiled.


	23. Wanted

_Cassandra_ reached the island of Garlan in the early afternoon of the fourth day after leaving Kurita. It was quite a large island, most of it consisting of the city of Coren. A city built on top of numerous hills, originally having been several smaller villages that had eventually expanded and joined together into one city.

And on the northwestern part of the island, towering over Coren, clearly visible to the crew of _Cassandra_ even though they were approaching from the east, was the Marine stronghold W4. It was home to over two hundred Marine soldiers, about half stationed there on the long term. While there were a lot of commodities on the inside of the walls of the base, it was unsurprisingly not uncommon to see Marines on leave all around Coren.

There were several docks around the city, so it did not take long for _Cassandra_ to find somewhere to land. Markus was the first to get off the boat and secure it to the dock, before turning towards the city.

"Well, here we are," he said. "Looks like a nice place."  
"It's certainly different from Kurita," Rink said. "Much brighter."  
"Do we have any plans for now?" Mirise asked.  
"I have to pick up some medical supplies since I had to leave some stuff at the clinic," Markus replied. "And I guess James wants his crutches as soon as possible. Might as well take a look around right away."  
"I'll go with you," Muse said as she disembarked.  
"Hold on," Rink said and pointed at Muse. "You might want to leave that piece on the boat."  
"What?" she asked.  
"Your bow," Rink replied and turned to Markus. "And your swords, too. There's a lot of Marines here, not sure it's a good idea to walk around with weapons at the ready."  
"But..." Muse started.  
"You're right," Markus said and took his sword holder off and handed it to Rink. "The last thing we want right now is to appear suspicious."  
"Fine," Muse said and removed her quiver, the bow neatly folded and placed inside it, and handed it to Rink as well.  
"See you in a bit," Markus said as the two of them started walking towards the city.  
"I guess we'll meet back up later and figure out dinner," Rink said before they got out of earshot. She stashed their weapons inside the cabin before getting onto solid ground herself. "Well, I want to do some shopping myself... I'm almost out of tobacco, and I'll see what else they have around here."  
"Do you want me to come with you?" Mirise asked.  
"Nah, it's fine, I don't think I'll be gone that long," Rink replied. "You stay here and keep James company."  
"Alright."  
"You want anything, James?" Rink half-shouted towards the boat.  
"Just something to alleviate my boredom from being stuck here," James replied. "At least get me a newspaper or something."  
"Can do," Rink replied before she walked away in her hunt for a smoke shop.

She strolled around the city, taking in the sights... such as they were. Rink thought it didn't seem to have been built with much of a plan, it seemed more that a bunch of buildings had been put up and eventually gotten used for something. The citizens didn't seem to have any problems finding their way around, but Rink couldn't make much sense out of the place. She saw Marines walking around almost everywhere she went, and while they would probably be willing to help her find what she was looking for, she felt a bit apprehensive about talking to any kind of law enforcement right now. She enjoyed stretching her legs after all that time at sea, anyway.

It didn't take her too long to find what she was looking for. Three hills over from the docks, Rink started seeing more and more smokers, and by simply heading in the direction they were coming from, soon found herself in front of a tobacco store wedged in between a clothing store and a gun shop. She entered the building, coming into what was a fairly simple and not too large of an establishment - shelves lining the walls with a variety of tobacco products and smoking paraphernalia, cigarettes, matches and lighters, prepackaged tobacco and various bulk containers. There were some other customers in there already, one Marine soldier and an elderly couple, and there seemed to be only one person working. She placed herself in the vague approximation of a line, waiting for her turn. The sole shopkeeper had no hair on his head but a bushy black beard and moustache, wearing a red and white checkered shirt, denim pants and suspenders, with a corn pipe in his hand. He was helping the couple find a gift box of expensive cigars, ending up with something at a price Rink didn't even want to think about, and the Marine soldier just picked up a carton of cigarettes before heading out, leaving Rink as the only customer remaining.

"Welcome," the shopkeeper said. "How can I help you?"  
"I need shredded tobacco," Rink said. "You have that?"  
"Sure do," the shopkeeper replied. "A few different brands."  
"You got any Style?" Rink asked.  
"None of that left and I don't know when I can get more," the shopkeeper answered. "I've got Seven Treasures."  
"I don't like that one," Rink replied. "Not chopped finely enough. I use it in a blend and in a thin pipe, so I need it to be really fine."  
"Well, then I only have Black Dandy and Courtesan's Hair."  
"Don't know if I've tried those, what are they like?"  
"Black Dandy's pretty concentrated, so you don't need a lot of it, got a bit of an oak flavour to it."  
"I don't like strong stuff, it's no good for mixing," Rink said. "What about the other one?"  
"Courtesan's Hair is very light, almost like cotton candy, got a pretty mild taste."  
"Sounds better, can I see it?"  
"Sure thing," the shopkeeper said and led Rink over to one of the shelves. He picked up a rectangular package, opened it up slightly at the top and held it out towards Rink, who put her nose to the opening and took a whiff.  
"Seems alright," she said and grabbed the package, emptying a little of it into her hand. It was as he had said - the strands of tobacco were thin, and when wadded together, coalesced into something that resembled light brown cotton candy. She put it back into the package and closed it, holding on to it. "Yeah, alright, I'll take two packs of it."  
"Very good," the shopkeeper said and brought another package of the tobacco over to the till. "Two packs of Courtesan's Hair, that'll be 1400 beli."  
"That much?" Rink asked. "That's almost twice the price of Style!"  
"What do you expect? Style's made here in West Blue, this one's imported from the Grand Line," the shopkeeper replied. "At least it's not Moon Princess!"  
"Moon... what?" Rink asked as she got her wallet out from one of her coat pockets.  
"The most expensive tobacco in the world," the shopkeeper said. "It's produced only on one island, and it's made from five rare ingredients, one from each Blue and one from that island. I've never seen it myself."  
"Huh," Rink said as she handed him two thousand-beli notes.  
"The only other thing I've found out is that the ingredient from here in the West starts with the bark from a tree that's almost extinct."  
"So I don't know if I even want to know, but how much does that cost?"  
"I don't even know," the shopkeeper said and handed Rink her change. "I've just heard the stories, it's never been traded outside of the Grand Line."  
"Well, I'll just remember that as something I'll never be able to afford trying," Rink said as she picked up her purchase and left the store. She looked down at the packages, at the top the name of the product was written in what Rink thought was an unnecessarily fancy style, and below that a highly stylized depiction of a woman's face, with dark blue makeup around the eyes and dark red lipstick, winking with one eye, and flowing brown hair on a white background. Certainly a lot more artistic than what she normally bought.

As she began her journey back to the docks, she took a different route. There was still one thing she was looking for - especially after this latest leg of their journey, Rink thought that going out to have a meal and then sleeping in a real bed was something they deserved. Sleeping in an actual bed was something she hadn't done since they left Avasine, as they had slept on the boat during their time at Kurita. So her second target was an inn, preferably close to the docks. In her search, she took some deliberate detours, and eventually came upon a two-story-tall building with a sign above the door naming it as the _Golden Finch Inn_. It had a couple of trees growing around it, and from its location and unique construction when compared to the buildings around it, Rink thought it seemed like something that had long ago been put up in an area where there wasn't anything else, but the city expansion had reached it from all directions and it had become part of the city without really wanting to. She smelled food from the inside, and even though the size of the place didn't really instill her with confidence that there'd be any vacancies for them, she went inside. Maybe they could eat there, at least.

The interior seemed to lend more credence to her theory, as the majority of the place looked like something that had been built many years ago. Some of the furniture and such was obviously more modern, but everything that was part of the building itself was made out of wood that looked like it had been around for a while. There was a counter in front of her, tables off to the left, and a set of stairs and some doors to the right. The counter wasn't staffed, it would seem, but Rink noted a bell sitting on top of it, so she walked up and rang it.  
"I'm a-comin'," she heard a female voice coming from the restaurant side shout. It didn't take long until a woman walked behind the counter from the other side. She was middle-aged, Rink guessed about fifty, with curly brown hair, glasses, and wearing a knitted green jumper. "Alrighty, welcome to th' Golden Finch, what can I do for ya?"  
"Ah, yes, I was wondering if you might have any rooms free tonight?" Rink asked.  
"Well, I might, I s'pose," the woman replied and opened up a binder. "Just the one of ya?"  
"No, we're five," Rink said. "I thought it would be nice with a meal and sleeping in an actual bed."  
"Tha's why we have this place."  
"Looks like it's been around for a while."  
"Been in th' family fer four generations," the innkeeper said. "My ma owned it before me, and her ma before her, and her ma and pa built it with their own hands."  
"Right," Rink said. "So, about the..."  
"Yeah, we can fit the lot of ya," she replied. "Not all in one room, but we got enough unoccupied beds."  
"That'll do nicely," Rink replied.  
"Should I book ya?"  
"Yeah, sure, reserve five beds, name's Kazai," Rink said. "We'll be over to eat tonight."  
"And there," the innkeeper said as she wrote Rink's request down in her papers. "I'll be seein' you later, then."  
"Thanks," Rink said and was about to turn around before she remembered something. "Oh, by the way, you wouldn't happen to have a newspaper, would you?"  
"Jus' yesterday's."  
"That's fine, we've been out to sea for a few days," Rink said.  
"Here you go, then," the innkeeper said and handed a folded-up newspaper to Rink.  
"How much is that?"  
"Eh, jus' take it."  
"Much appreciated," Rink said before exiting the inn and turning back towards the docks they had arrived at.

It wasn't a long trek, only a few minutes of walking brought Rink back to _Cassandra_. James had, presumably with help from Mirise, moved out from the cabin and was now sitting on the deck holding a cup of coffee, while Mirise sat on the railing eating a banana.  
"Welcome back," she said in between bites. "Found what you were looking for?"  
"Yeah, no problem," Rink said and spotted more bananas lying at Mirise's feet. "Where'd you get those from?"  
"A guy walked by with a fruit cart, so I bought some," Mirise replied and pushed one onto her right foot with her left. "Want one?"  
"Sure, why not," Rink said as she stepped onto the deck, followed by Mirise flicking her right leg to send the banana towards Rink, who caught it in her free hand. "Those two aren't back yet?"  
"No, it's just been us," James said.  
"Well, here's your paper," Rink said and handed the newspaper to James and started peeling her banana. "It's yesterday's. Let me know if it says anything interesting."  
"Sure," James said and unfolded the paper.  
"By the way, I found an inn for us," Rink said as she started eating the fruit.  
"Inn?" James asked.  
"Yeah, see, I thought it would be nice to sleep in an actual bed and eat a meal cooked in an actual kitchen for once."  
"That _would_ be nice, yeah," James said as he opened up the paper. As he did, a sheet of light brown paper slid out of it, gliding over the deck and landing face down in front of Mirise.  
"What's this?" she said as she leaned down to pick it up, turning it around to see the front. "Wha- this is..."  
"What?" Rink asked.  
"It's mister Flint!" Mirise exclaimed as she turned the paper towards James and Rink. There, in the middle, was a picture that, while obviously not recent, was clearly identifiable as Markus. Above the picture, in large dark brown letters, the word **WANTED**. Underneath, **DEAD OR ALIVE - MARKUS FLINT - Ɓ25,000,000**.

They stared at the wanted poster for a few moments. This shouldn't have been possible, but there it was... right in front of them. There was only one explanation for what he was wanted for... and this island was...  
"Give me that!" Rink suddenly said and ripped the newspaper out of James's hands and started frantically turning the pages. "Here! 'The murder of Galt, the mayor of Kurita, in his home... according to bodyguards, murderer was assisted by an unidentified person... chief of the town guard found dead, no leads there...' huh."  
"Sounds like that vice guard captain kept to his word," James added.  
"And here. 'While the results of the investigation have not been disclosed to the public, Marines confirm that information left behind by the deceased have identified a primary suspect as Markus Flint, a local doctor who appears to have fled the island following the incident. Should you have any information about Flint or any other sightings that may be of interest to the case, please contact your local Marine station.' Damn."  
"How did they even..." James started saying.  
"I don't know and I don't care. What's important is-" Rink said before freezing up. "Oh, _fuck_."  
"What?" Mirise asked.  
"This is _yesterday's_ paper."  
"If that was made public yesterday..." James said.  
"With all the Marines here..." Rink continued.  
"Mister Flint and miss Muse might be in trouble!" Mirise said and stood up, dropping the wanted poster on the deck.  
"Crap, crap, crap," Rink said as she dropped the paper and looked towards the city. "Where'd they go?"  
"I don't know!" James exclaimed as Rink and Mirise started getting off the boat.  
"You, uh... stay here," Rink said and looked at James. "We'll try to find-"  
"I don't think we have to," Mirise said and put a hand on Rink's arm.  
"What do you mean?" Rink asked and turned to Mirise, who pointed in the direction Markus and Muse had left.  
"She's coming," Mirise replied. Rink looked up, and sure enough, Muse was running towards them with a half panicked, half crying expression on her face.  
"Hey, what's-" Rink said as Muse closed in, but she ignored them and jumped onto the ship.  
"My bow," she said and turned to Rink. "My bow, where's my bow!"  
"In the cabin, but-" Rink said as she got onto the ship herself, but Muse wasn't listening to anything else. She disappeared into the cabin and soon reemerged, holding her bow and quiver.  
"I have to go!" she said and started moving towards the docks, but Rink reached out and caught her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "Let me go!"  
"Calm down," Rink said and pulled Muse back, turning her so they faced each other. "What happened?"  
"They took him," Muse said with tears in her eyes. " _They took Markus!_ "


	24. Team spirit

"Took?" Rink said, still holding on to Muse. "You mean..."  
"The Marines! They took him!" Muse half-shouted in Rink's face.  
"That's what I was afraid of..." Rink said and looked towards the island, then back to Muse. "Anyway, we should probably not talk out here. Let's get inside."  
"No, I have to go, I have to..." Muse protested, struggling to free herself from Rink's grip.  
"Muse, calm down, we have to-"  
"No, let me go!"  
"Please, calm down and talk to us!"  
"I have to save him!"  
"Muse, please!" Rink said. "You can't just-"  
"Let me _go_!"  
"I said, _calm down!_ " Rink exclaimed as she delivered a quick smack to Muse's left cheek.  
"I..." Muse said as she stopped struggling and brought her hand up to her cheek.  
"Sorry... but panicking isn't going to help anyone," Rink said, tentatively released her grip on Muse and pointed at the cabin door. "Everyone, in the cabin. _Now_."  
"Al... alright," Muse said and did as she had been told.  
"Okay," Rink said and picked up Markus's wanted poster, then looked at James. "Mirise, little help here?"  
"Sure," Mirise said and assisted Rink in getting James into the cabin quickly. Rink closed the door behind them and looked to Muse, who seemed to have calmed down, but kept looking at the floor with a blank expression on her face.  
"Alright," Rink said and sat down at the table, putting the wanted poster in the middle of it. "Why don't you take it from the top?"  
"O... okay," Muse said. "It was... we had separated briefly, Markus had gone into a pharmacy and I had gone into a store to get oil for my bow... when I came out, I saw Markus, surrounded by five Marine soldiers. He saw me as well, and just for a moment, stared at me and shook his head a little... like he was telling me to not do anything. They were talking to him, I didn't notice all that they said, but he was staying calm, and he just... let them take him away."  
"And then you ran here," James said.  
"Yes... because I have to help him," Muse said.  
"Good thing you were unarmed," Rink said.  
"What? If I had my bow-"  
"If you had your bow, you wouldn't be here right now," Rink said, calmly. "If Markus had had his swords, they would have treated him like a more imminent threat... despite what the wanted poster says, he's still just a suspect. And if you had had your bow, you would have done something really stupid."  
"It doesn't matter!" Muse shouted and stood up. "I have to get him back!"  
"And exactly _how_ were you planning on doing that?" Rink asked.  
"I... I'm going to rescue him."  
"You're going to rescue Markus."  
"Yes! I'll free him, and..."  
"By storming a Marine stronghold on your own with just a bow?"  
"I..."  
"Look, I get that you want to help him... but you're just going to get yourself killed."  
"What choice do I have?" Muse shouted. "This is my problem, I don't want to cause any more trouble..."  
"It's a little too late for that, missy," Rink said and pointed to the wanted poster. "With the situation as it is... we're in this _together_ , whether you like it or not."  
"But why would you..."  
"Because you and mister Flint are our friends," Mirise said. "And friends help each other."  
"It's as she said," Rink said. "If you think we're going to let you just rush in there without any plan for getting in, much less one for getting _out_ , you better think again."  
"So..." Muse said and sat down again. "How...?"  
"Well... first of all we have to figure out how we get in," Rink said. "We're not going to be able to break in... so the best option would be to..."  
"Be what?" Mirise asked.  
"We're going to need Marine uniforms," Rink replied.  
"I'm not sure just putting on a uniform is going to be enough," James said. "Not in a place like this."  
"I don't think so either," Rink said. "It's just the first step."  
"So how do we get them? It's not like we can just buy them."  
"Well, we don't have time to make our own, so..."  
"We're going to have to steal them, is what you're saying."  
"Yeah, that's... the only way I can think of," Rink said. "Two of them."  
"Just two?" Muse asked.  
"Well, yes," Rink replied. "James isn't going anywhere, and Mirise..."  
"Yes?" Mirise said.  
"You're going to have to make sure we can leave the instant we're all on board afterwards, otherwise it's all going to be for nothing."  
"I understand," Mirise replied.  
"So it's you and me, Muse," Rink said and turned to Muse.  
"Alright..." Muse said. "I get to bring my bow this time, right?"  
"We're going to need our weapons, but we should probably keep them hidden until we're in..."  
"So... how do we do this, and... when?" Muse asked.  
"Tonight," Rink replied. "We don't know what they're planning to do with him, after all... so better get this done as soon as possible. It might be insanity... but we're going to get Markus out of there."

* * *

"See anything good?"  
"Not yet..."

Coren had several locations that could be considered restaurant districts, with a mix of restaurants and bars. Mirise and Muse were sitting in the middle of one in the center of the island, on separate benches with their backs towards each other, looking around for a pair of suitable victims. Mirise had covered her hair with a black shawl, to hide her most distinguishing feature just in case. Rink had split off for what she called 'another errand', having taken their weapons with her, but assured them that she would catch up.

"There's two... no, wait, he's too tall."  
"A trio of drunks leaving a bar... can we deal with three?"  
"It's probably best if we don't. Two women over there... but I think they're sober."  
"This is the worst idea."  
"We'll find something, we have to help mister Flint..."  
"Okay... I think I've got one. Behind you, to the right. Two guys, definitely tipsy."  
"Are they the right size?"  
"Close enough. Alright, I'll head off, you know what to do..."  
"Sure," Mirise said with a nod as Muse stood up and walked away. Mirise glanced behind her, spotting the Marine duo that Muse had indicated. She watched them for a short time, and they had clearly had a few drinks, which was definitely a good thing. She waited until they were on their way out of the area before she stood up and walked around a building so she could approach them from the other side. Time to switch on the charm, she thought as she walked in front of them. Luckily there weren't too many other people around. "Oh, excuse me, gentlemen..."  
"Hm?" one of them said and looked at Mirise, clearly not completely focused. "He... hello there, miss."  
"I need assistance from some strong men like yourselves," Mirise said with a smile. "Can I trouble you for some help?"  
"Um... certainly, we would love to help," the other Marine said.  
"Oh, thanks a lot," Mirise said. "I don't know what I would have done otherwise!"  
"What... do you need help with?"  
"I'll show you, I promise I'll make it worth your while," Mirise said with a wink before turning around. "But you have to come with me."  
"How could we say no to a pretty little thing like you?" one of them said with a laugh. They looked at each other and grinned as they started following Mirise, surely expecting a nice reward.  
"Just what we needed," Mirise whispered to herself as she led the two of them through Coren. Mirise knew Muse was shadowing them, but she didn't know where she was, and if she didn't, then those two wouldn't notice anything either. Now they had to find a place where no one could see them... she tried to head in the direction that seemed to have the least activity. But unpopulated places were few, and the minutes passed.  
"How far are we going?" one of the men asked. Mirise quickly looked around, and spotted Muse standing between two buildings, pointing behind herself and then walking into the alley. Mirise figured it was probably the best they'd get, and the Marines would get impatient soon.  
"Oh, it's not far now," Mirise said and turned towards the alley. "It's a shortcut through here, it's just on the other side."  
"Well, alright then."  
"This better work," Mirise said to herself without actually speaking as she passed into the alley. She looked in front of her... it was completely empty, and there hadn't been any people just outside either. She expected Muse to do something while they were in there, but she didn't see her anywhere... she swallowed as she came out on the other side, followed by the two men.  
"Now where-" was all one of them managed to say before Mirise heard two impacts, and turned around to see Muse and Rink standing over two knocked out Marines. Rink was holding a rope and had two bags next to her, one of which she opened and pulled out some strips of cloth.  
"Took you long enough," Muse said.  
"Hey, I was getting more stuff we need," Rink replied. "There's no people on this side at all, so let's pull these... guys, huh... a bit farther..."  
"They were the best we could get," Muse replied as she and Rink dragged the unconscious bodies along the back of the building.  
"Let's gag 'em to be certain," Rink said and handed a strip to Muse, who tied it around the mouth of one of the Marines. Rink did the same with the other.  
"And..."  
"Well, we need the shirts, the caps and the pants, at least, so... time to strip them."

Soon Rink and Muse had reduced their victims to nothing but underpants, socks and shoes. Just to be on the safe side, they tied them up as well before starting to get out of their own clothes (putting them in a bag for Mirise to take back to the boat) and started putting their Marine outfits on. They weren't a perfect fit, but some quick folding here and there meant they looked passable.

"Right, so... how do we get in?" Muse asked as she put her Marine cap on her head. "You said this wouldn't be enough..."  
"Alright, so here's the idea," Rink said. "With the size of this stronghold, they have to have new Marines coming in on the regular. And you've seen the Marines around the city... some of them aren't working."  
"So?" Muse said.  
"So, what I mean is that there's got to be a portion of Marines on leave at any time," Rink said. "But even if they are out and about in the city..."  
"...they still live on the base," Mirise continued.  
"Exactly. So we wait a bit, find some larger group of Marines that's returning to base after having been out drinking, claim we just transferred here..."  
"You really think that'll work?" Muse asked. "Won't they check who goes in?"  
"It's the shaky part of the plan, yes," Rink said. "But hopefully, whoever's working the graveyard guard shift will be disinterested enough..."  
"And... if they're not?" Muse asked.  
"Then we improvise," Rink said. "Worst comes to worst, we'll punch our way through..."  
"Isn't that what you were stopping me from doing earlier?"  
"Stopping you from trying to attack alone in broad daylight," Rink replied. "If we can make it to the entrance... then there's two of us, we can knock out a few of them, and... hopefully have time to figure something out before they wake the whole base up. We're definitely going to have to punch our way _out_..."  
"That doesn't sound too reassuring," Muse said.  
"I'll be the first to admit that it's not a perfect plan," Rink said. "But it's the best we have. It's not like we can just sneak in somewhere else, and even if we somehow cause a disturbance somewhere else on the island, they're not going to empty the base for it."  
"So our entire plan still hinges on people being drunk and tired."  
"On such short notice, it's the best we can do."  
"Fine..."  
"Well then, just proceed like we said before," Rink said and turned to Mirise. "Get some food for you and James, and if we're not out by sunrise..."  
"I don't want to hear it," Mirise said. "But... good luck."  
"We'll need it," Rink said. "Now get out of here, we can't be seen together like this."  
"I'll see you later," Mirise said and left.  
"Right then, just one more thing," Rink said and took off her eyepatch, putting it in her right pants pocket, before producing a pair of glasses from the bag and put them on. "What do you think?"  
"What?" Muse said and turned to look at Rink. The glasses had very thick lenses, making it almost impossible to make out any details of what was beneath them. "You look ridiculous."  
"Ridiculous is good," Rink said.  
"Can you even see anything with those?"  
"Not really, but don't worry about that," Rink said and picked up the bag. "Let's go..."

They made sure to not be spotted as they walked back out on the streets of Coren, and given the rate of Marines regularly around in the city, no one even cast as much as a second glance at them. They slowly made their way towards another one of Coren's restaurant districts, this one being closer to the stronghold and having more pubs and bars than restaurants.

"Okay, so..." Muse said.  
"We find a popular one, have a bite, and wait until some of them start going back to base," Rink replied.  
"Do we have time for that?"  
"We're not doing anything until we've had something to eat," Rink said. "Being hungry isn't going to be to our advantage."  
"But-" Muse said before being interrupted by a small growl coming from her stomach. "...okay, fine, I see what you mean. Food it is."

After some quick inspection of the locales around them, Rink and Muse entered a pub where at least half the clientèle seemed to consist of Marines. They found a table in a corner, ordered whatever on the menu that they could get the fastest (lightly toasted sandwiches with water to drink) and kept an eye open for any groups about to leave. Just shy of twenty minutes had passed when a group of five rose from their table in the middle of the place. Three men, two women, and all of them appeared to have had at least one glass more than they should. After leaving money for their bill on the table, Rink and Muse stood up as well and left the pub after the group. As the five of them started moving in the general direction of the stronghold, some of them needing a bit of support from the others to walk straight, Rink and Muse started tailing them as inconspicuously as possible. With how rowdy the group was, singing and laughing as they made their way towards the towering structure in front of them, there didn't seem to be much to worry about. They were even joined by more soldiers in varying states of inebriety on their way, and by the time they could see the gates of W4, they totalled eleven including Rink and Muse.

"Well... that was the easy part," Rink whispered to Muse. Muse didn't reply as she stared at the place before her. Markus was somewhere in here - and she would make sure he wasn't going to stay.


	25. W4

The walls of W4 encircled the entire northwestern part of Garlan. For most of the area, going over the wall would involve a drop straight into the ocean. Within these walls, there were several structures, but the centerpiece of the stronghold took up the majority of the area - two tall, round, green towers, standing close together, with an equally tall wall-like section connecting them. On the west tower, on the northern, western and southern walls, three large white **W** s had been painted. On the east tower, on the northern, eastern and southern walls, three large white **4** s. On both the northern and southern side of the section connecting the two, the Marine emblem. To the northeast of the towers were the docks of W4, to the northwest an open area used for training. Scattered around were smaller buildings with various functions, such as equipment storage, training halls, even some shops and restaurants as well as some other recreational establishments.

When it had been first constructed, it was the largest stronghold in West Blue after W1. Since then, W2 had expanded and was now of a similar size, and W5 was built as large. The Marines were currently planning the construction of W6, intended to be a larger installation than even W1, and the first West Blue stronghold constructed after the execution of Gold Roger.

But it was through the gates of W4 that Rink and Muse were currently walking, disguised as Marine soldiers and hoping to conceal themselves within a larger group of mostly drunk Marines. The gate was not closed, but there were four guards armed with rifles posted, two on each side. The group wandered in, with a few nods and waves and hellos between the guards and those who were walking in. Rink and Muse had just walked past the perimeter, when...

"Hey, you two," one of the guards said. "You with the glasses, and with the black hair..."  
"...me, sir?" Rink asked, slowly turning towards the guard that had spoken. Muse did the same.  
"I don't recognize you."  
"Oh, we're new, sir," Rink said. "Just transfered here, arrived today..."  
"Do you have your IDs?"  
"We were told our documents would be here, we're new recruits, here to complete our training, but we weren't actually supposed to come until tomorrow," Rink lied. "But they told us it would be fine, that we would get a place to sleep here..."  
"Hm..."  
"Please, sir, we've had a long journey..."  
"Very well, let's see if we can get you cleared," the guard said. "What are your names?"  
"Sonya Martinson," Rink replied. "And this is my sister..."  
"Um... Morrigan," Muse continued.  
"You don't look much alike..."  
"We're half-siblings. Different mothers," Rink explained.  
"Ages?"  
"Twenty-eight," Rink said.  
"Twenty-four."  
"Alright, we're going to have to run a check," the guard said and looked towards the two guards on the other side. "Hey, Cid!" he shouted, following which one of the guards from the other side walked up to them.  
"Sir?" he said.  
"Take these two and run a check on them," he said. "Sonya and Morrigan Martinson, was it?"  
"Yes, sir," Rink said.  
"If it clears, find them a place to sleep, then you can go off your pass."  
"Sir, yes sir," the guard named Cid said and then turned to Rink and Muse. "Well then, follow me."  
"Alright," Rink said as they followed Cid farther inside W4.

There weren't many Marines outside at this time of day, Rink noted as they headed towards a one-story building at the side of the main structure of W4. As Cid started unlocking the door, Muse turned to Rink.  
"What now?" she whispered as low as she could, knowing Rink could probably hear it anyway.  
"As soon as we get in, close the door after you and then cover your ears," Rink whispered back and handed their bag over to Muse. She gave the slightest of nods in reply before Cid turned to them.  
"Right, come on in and we'll get this done," he said.  
"Yes, sir," Rink replied and entered the room after Cid, Muse right behind her. Cid hit a light switch, illuminating the room, revealing it to be an archive room, with bookshelves and cabinets everywhere as well as a few desks. Rink cast a quick glance at Muse, who went inside and closed the door. Without Cid noticing, she put a finger in each ear as Muse turned to Cid and walked up next to him.  
"Since you have the same family name, this should be fast, we just-"  
Before he could finish talking, Rink opened her mouth and shouted at his head from close range. A very quick, _very_ loud shout, certainly louder than a normal human would be able to shout. Cid put his hands to his head and reeled backwards confused as Rink struck him in the head with her elbow, knocking him out. She removed her glasses and looked down at him.  
"What was that?" Muse asked as she approached.  
"A loud sound to the head like that would paralyze anyone," Rink replied before leaning down and taking his keyring. "So..."  
"And now?"  
"Let's stash him somewhere," Rink said and looked around. "And... tie him up, I guess. Do we have any more rope?"  
"Maybe," Muse said and opened up the bag, taking out her quiver before holding up a length of rope about as long as her arm. "Not much."  
"It'll do," Rink replied and grabbed it before starting to tie Cid's hands together behind his back. They proceeded to gag him as well before putting him in a closet-like room (containing even more shelves with dusty documents) on the other side of the building, locking the door from the outside.  
"Is he really going to be fine?" Muse asked.  
"If nothing else, they'll find him in the morning," Rink replied. "By then we have to be far away from here anyway."  
"Alright, now what's the plan?"  
"Well..." Rink said and held up Cid's keyring before pocketing it. "We should probably split up. Easier to explain away being one person acting a bit strangely than two. Trying to wander in here like we did is something that no sensible person would ever consider doing, so I'd wager that nobody's really going to suspect someone dressed like a Marine to be anything but. And that's definitely to our advantage."  
"Right..."  
"You take the left tower, I take the right... I can't imagine they don't hold the prisoners in the largest structure."  
"Sure."  
"But most importantly..." Rink said as she got her arm guard out of the bag, put it on and put some tuning forks in her pockets. "No playing the hero on your own. If either of us find Markus, we get back together first before trying to spring him."  
"I... alright," Muse replied.  
"So to make sure of that, _I'll_ take the bag and the keys," Rink said. "And if we run into too much trouble... get the other's attention, somehow. I think we both have ways to do that. And in the worst case scenario, we _bail_."  
"But-"  
"I'm sure you agree that that's better than getting killed."  
"Well, let's just go," Muse said, avoiding actually replying to Rink's statement.  
"I don't hear anyone in the vicinity, so you should be good to go," Rink said. "I'll stay here for five minutes, better if we don't get seen together from now on."  
"Okay."  
"And Muse... good luck."  
"Thanks," Muse said and walked up to the door. As she put her hand on the handle, she stopped. "And... thanks for all the help..."  
"It's what friends are for," Rink said before Muse left the building. "Well then," she said to herself as she wrapped a piece of cloth around her left arm to cover up her arm guard, planning to pass it off as an injury if anyone asked, and added Cid's rifle to the now nearly empty bag of equipment. She flipped through some papers while waiting, trying to see if there was something helpful, something about prisoners or a blueprint of the base or anything - but everything in here just seemed to be about the Marine organization, reports about the base, enlisted soldiers, shipments, bills. Rink quickly grew bored of the contents, so she slung the bag over her right shoulder and put the glasses back on. Standing by the door, she turned the lights off and listened to what was going on outside. Not much - a few people passing, but none close by, and no one heading towards the building she was in. When she figured five minutes had gone by since Muse left, she waited until she was completely sure there weren't anyone outside that would notice anything before opening the door and walking out, closing and locking it behind her. She looked up at the towering structure that was the heart of W4, for the first time really reflecting over just _how_ large this place was. Even if they had split up to cover more ground, searching through _this_ place without being noticed would be a monumental task. But it was too late to realize that now. They'd have to figure this out, one way or another.

Being able to hear where every person that could potentially spot her was definitely helped in Rink's journey to the eastern tower, short as it was. As thick as the walls were, though, she couldn't hear much of what going on inside - there were definitely people inside, but everything was muffled, and it could as easily be prisoners in cells as just Marines in their rooms. But what struck her the most, however, was the lack of any kind of entrance on the tower itself. She walked along the wall in search of some kind of door, but found nothing. But at the back, there was a rectangular offshoot of the structure, mostly looking like a small shed fused with the tower itself. And on the western side of this little protrusion, there was an iron door. Rink raised her glasses to her forehead and grabbed the door handle. Locked, unsurprisingly. But maybe that wouldn't be much of an issue, she thought as she got Cid's keys out of her pocket. One of these keys could open that archive room, maybe there was a key to... whatever this was as well. Eleven keys, mostly identical. She started trying them out, one by one, and struck the jackpot on the seventh key in the sequence. She slipped inside, closing and locking the door behind her, and after almost tripping over something on the floor, found a light switch on the wall.

As the little room lit up, Rink's initial reaction was disappointment. The direction of the tower just had a solid wall, so no going through there. The room itself amounted to being little more than a tool shed, and there didn't seem to be much to be had here. But just as Rink decided it was time to head back out, she heard something beneath her.

Water.

If the floor was solid concrete, she wouldn't be able to hear it this clearly... she searched for the source, and after, with some effort, getting a steel barrel half filled with oil out of the way, discovered a grate in the floor. There was no mistaking what she had found, and while she didn't like the prospect, she figured that it was probably her best bet right now. A crowbar would help, she thought, but as she could not find one, had to settle for the back end of a hammer. It took her a good ten minutes of effort, but eventually she managed to pull the grate free from the rectangular hole in the floor. She'd just about be able to fit through there...

Even if she could hear where she was going, some light would definitely help. She had brought a box of matches mostly on reflex, but just matches wouldn't be enough of a light source. As she looked around, she removed her glasses and put her eyepatch on. Spotting two brooms standing in a corner, she had an idea. She broke the handle of one in half, and tied the cloth she had kept on her left arm around the tip. She dipped it in the oil, and figuring it to be the best she could do, looked down the hole in the floor again. She tossed down her bag and the hammer first, then turned off the light in the room. Unlit torch in hand, she squeezed herself through the hole, trying to pull the grate back in place as she descended. It didn't quite fall into place, but she hoped nobody would notice it before it didn't matter anymore.

She lit a match and ignited the oily cloth. A lamp would have helped, but it gave Rink enough light to see around her. As expected, it wasn't the best-looking of places... and the smell wasn't much better. Pipes ran along the ceiling and walls, and there was just enough room to be able to walk on a heightened section next to the flow of discoloured water in the middle.  
"At least I'm not wearing my good clothes... or my own clothes at all," she said to herself as she held the torch in different directions to figure out where to go. It was as she had hoped - the sewer tunnel went in the direction of the tower, past the wall. Not even a gate or anything.

Moving underground, without any walls in the way, let Rink get farther than she had really thought possible. She tried to ignore the filth of this place as much as she could as she followed the tunnel, and while it did have some twists and turns to it, she was sure that it was the right direction. While the most interesting things she found for most of her trip were rats and flies, eventually she spotted a ladder embedded in the wall, leading up towards a circular hole. She put out her torch, which was almost completely spent anyway, and started climbing up. At the top, she felt a metal cover above her. Luckily, this one seemed to have been designed to be removed, as she managed to start shifting it with just a few pushes. Getting it out of the way, she climbed up into another fairly small room, though larger than the one she had found earlier.

After putting the cover back in place, she located the light switch. This was some sort of maintenance room, with electrical generators and a lot of wires. A cabinet was situated on the wall with a variety of switches visible through a clear cover, but it was shut with a padlock and Rink found that none of the keys she had worked. She had no idea where she had ended up, but there didn't seem to be any people around. There was a single door in the room, and while it was locked, could be unlocked from the inside without a key. Rink very slightly opened it and peered outside.

Just a dark corridor, and only the faintest sound of something or someone that didn't seem to be moving. Well, nothing to lose now, Rink figured as she started making her way down the corridor. The solid, grey concrete walls didn't tell her much about where she had ended up, but there had to be something. With her hand on the wall, she tried moving towards the single sound she was hearing. After two corners, the corridor was completely without light, and the layout seemed almost maze-like to Rink. But there was something here, and whatever it was, should at least clue her in to where she was...

After a few more turns, whatever she had located was now in front of her. By now, she had identified it as a body, but something about the sound was odd. She was unable to put her finger on why, but she went towards it with an arm out in front of her, and found...

Iron bars. That would make this some kind of prison cell. Rink thought that she might as well see what she had found, and lit a match to get a bit of light. It wasn't much, but as her eye started adjusting itself, could see the silhouette of someone sitting on the other side. It wasn't Markus, that was for sure, but at least she knew she had found at least one jail. She turned around and prepared to look for another exit, hopefully leading to more cells, hopefully leading to Markus. But before she had started moving, she heard a gruff voice from behind her.

"I didn't know I was allowed visitors at this hour!"


	26. A dangerous prisoner

Muse's excursion into W4 had, while eventful, certainly been something different from Rink's exploration. She had found the main entrance of the western tower, and wandered inside while trying to act natural, even if she didn't have much experience with that. After entering, and concluding that it definitely wasn't a prison but rather seemed to be where the soldiers lived, she had tried to find some kind of map. The combination of an unfamiliar face - a female face, at that - and not appearing to know what she was looking for had led to the assembly of a crowd of people too eager to help out. As she couldn't really tell them why she was actually here, she allowed them to give her the tour - still under the guise of Morrigan Martinson, new recruit. Perhaps she could at least learn something about the base and thereby where she might find Markus. Halfway up the stairs to the second floor, someone pointed out her quiver, and before she had really figured out what to do about it, had been taken to the training grounds to demonstrate her archery. She didn't quite show off the full extent of her skills, and certainly not any of her specialty arrows. She would easily have been able to deal with the dozen or so Marine soldiers around her if she wanted, but that wasn't going to improve their chances of finding Markus any. Letting off a sigh as she hit the training target dead on after increasing the distance to it for the fourth time, she hoped Rink was having better luck and that she would give her an excuse to get out of her current situation soon.

* * *

Rink turned around. She still couldn't see anything clearly, but there was the obvious shape of a person sitting inside the cell, someone fairly wide. And the sound of their body was... human but different, but Rink also felt like there was something garbling up what she should be hearing.  
"I didn't mean to wake you up," Rink said.  
"What are you doing here?" the gruff voice from within asked. "You don't sound familiar."  
"I'm, uh... new here. Just transf-"  
"No, you're not."  
"Sorry?"  
"Let me ask you this... do you know who I am?"  
"Should I?"  
"Hah! There's no way you wouldn't know about me if you were really a Marine here," the man said with a laugh. "Hell, just being a Marine in West Blue should be enough. And if you were new, there's no way you'd be sent down here. Not on guard patrol, not even as a hazing prank..."  
"Fine, you figured out that I'm not really a Marine," Rink said and walked up to the bars. "You want a medal?"  
"Ha ha... I'd be satisfied with knowing what you're really doing here."  
"I'm... here to rescue a friend," Rink replied. "I know he's somewhere in this base..."  
"All on your own?"  
"I... have a companion, but she's investigating the other tower..."  
"Hah! I'm impressed you got as far as you did, but you're going to need more help than _that_ to find someone _here_."  
"I'm starting to realize that, yeah," Rink replied. "But I have to do what I can."  
"So I suppose that uniform got you through the gate, but I'm curious how you got in here..."  
"Came across some keys... and then wandered through the sewers," Rink replied. "Not something I want to do again, but..."  
"That's a new one," the man said. "Well, you seem to be quite the crafty one..."  
"I've been around," Rink said. "And if you'll excuse me, I have to be on my way."  
"Why don't we help each other out, here?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"You get me out of here, and I help you find your friend. I know the workings of this place..."  
"And how do you suggest I do that? I don't think any of the keys I have are going to work," Rink said. "Well, I have a rifle..."  
"You won't be able to shoot out this lock with something that puny," the man replied. "Not my shackles either."  
"Maybe..." Rink said and got a tuning fork out of her pocket, walked up to the gate and struck the lock. She listened for a moment. "Okay, no, that won't work either."  
"What was- well, never mind. You'll need the keys."  
"And where do I get those?"  
"The guard room, to the right."  
"I came from there, just a maintenance room," Rink replied.  
"Uh, my right."  
"Oh. Yeah, there's something over there. And... a path behind me?"  
"That's the main entrance to here, but that one's locked tight."  
"Where's 'here', anyway? Not really sure where I've ended up..."  
"The maximum security cell of W4, in the basement of the prison tower..."  
"Maximum security, huh? You must be some big shot."  
"As far as West Blue goes..."  
"So before I help you... who exactly are you?"  
"My name's Allen Roland."  
"You're... Roland? The butcher of the 62nd branch? Three dead, eight injured..."  
"Is _that_ what the Marines turned it into!?" he exclaimed. "I should've known..."  
"It's what it said in the papers," Rink replied. "That's not what happened?"  
"I did attack them, but... it's not like I did it just for the hell of it..." Allen said.  
"So what was the reason?"  
"Maybe I can tell you the whole story once we're out of here."  
"Alright, fine," Rink said. "I guess we have a deal. So... just get to the guard room, get the keys?"  
"It won't be that simple... if you come from this side, they'll know something's wrong."  
"Well, it's not like I can come from the other side without a lot of hassle, from the sounds of it..."  
"There's no way to go around from here. We'll have to get some guards in here."  
"Do they patrol, or something?" Rink asked.  
"Not much... they come by six times a day, including breakfast, lunch and dinner," Allen replied. "Last check is before they turn out the lights for the night, and then they don't come back until breakfast."  
"I don't have time to wait until your breakfast."  
"That would be a bad idea anyway, the best time would be now... the guards are fewer, the snails are dormant..."  
"...snails? You don't mean..."  
"Surveillance snails, of course... you would have passed some coming here, and there's two more in my cell."  
"...so why have they not come to shoot me already?"  
"The snails are sleeping... and as long as the lights are out, they can't see much anyway. They don't pick up too much sound, probably wouldn't even pick up our conversation if they were awake, but they're very sensitive to light."  
"So... if guards come in here... they'll turn the lights on, and that'll wake up the snails, right?"  
"Yes."  
"I'm starting to like this plan less and less... but how are you proposing we do this?"  
"I'm gonna wake up the snails in my cell."  
"Okay, now I definitely don't like this plan."  
"It's the only way to get their attention from here, without letting them know there's someone else around."  
"How are you even going to do that?"  
"Being loud enough will wake them up, so it won't be a problem," Allen explained. "They won't see anything, but... even if it's dark, the guards will note that they're active, and they'll have to come check on me. They don't take any risks when it comes to me, even if I haven't tried anything for as long as I've been here..."  
"How long _have_ you been here?"  
"Four months."  
"Gets boring, I take it."  
"This is the most exciting thing that's happened so far..."  
"So... you wake up the snails, then... what?"  
"All I know is that they'll turn the lights on and come in here to check on me. There's not really anywhere to hide here, and there's no telling where the snails will be when the lights go on-"  
"I don't think that'll be a problem, actually."  
"Are you sure?"  
"Yeah... I can find them."  
"Right... anyway, it's the only chance we'll have."  
"Hmm... they'll have the keys with them, right?"  
"Probably. They don't want to, but they have to be prepared for the possibility they have to enter my cell."  
"And... as long the snails don't see it, nobody will really notice anything that happens down here until the breakfast patrol?"  
"Pretty much... what do you have in mind?"  
"I think I know know to do this now," Rink said. "So... any idea how many guards there'll be?"  
"At least three, maybe some more... I don't know how many they have in the guard room at this time of day, not too many, but they'll want to cover some of the exits... and there'll be someone there watching the snail feeds."  
"Alright... I have me an idea."  
"Like... what?"  
"Just give me some time to find a spot... then do your thing and I'll take care of the rest. And stall the ones that come in here for as long as you can."  
"Um..."  
"Trust me. You'll know when I do my thing."  
"Oh, alright, it makes no difference to me if you mess up..."  
"You'll be out of here before the sun goes up."  
"Or we'll both be dead."  
"Would you rather stay here and rot?"  
"They'd get around to dealing with me eventually... but I do suppose you're right. I have more to gain than lose."  
"Great. Give me five minutes, then let's do this."  
"If you say so," Allen said as Rink turned around. "By the way... what's your name?"  
"Rink Kazai. Remember it!"

* * *

In the guard room of W4's prison basement, six Marine soldiers were currently working - or something like it. Four of them were sitting around a small square table playing cards, and the other two were sitting at a desk with a grid of black screens in front of them, doing little more than drinking coffee and generally trying to not doze off for the remaining hours of the graveyard shift. But base protocol was that all stations had to be manned around the clock with a minimum specified number of personnel, and _someone_ had to do it. This particular station was simultaneously the least exciting and most scary one, as while nothing requiring serious intervention had ever actually occurred in the maximum security section of this base, nobody wanted to be there if it did.

The expectation was that this would be like every other night. Nothing going on, do something to waste the time while somehow staying awake, then go to bed and sleep until lunchtime. But just as one of the soldiers put down a full house of aces and jacks, thus winning the current pool of 540 beli, a small light went on in the corner of two of the screens, each accompanied by a small _blip_. The initial reaction from the staff was confusion, as they had never seen them activate at this time before - and never while the lights were off. But as they watched the two active screens, there was definitely motion visible, even if they couldn't see any specific thing going on.

"It's..." one of the Marines at the desk said.  
"It's him," the other one filled in. "Roland..."  
"What's he doing?"  
"I don't know, but it looks like he's awake... and we're going to have to deal with that. Lights!"  
One of the card-playing Marines got up to flip a switch next to the door leading to Allen's room, and the rest of the screens quickly switched on as the light that flooded the corridors woke up the rest of the snails. They showed nothing out of the ordinary - just nondescript gray concrete walls and floors - and the only thing to take note of was Allen's cell. He was roaring and thrashing about as much as he could with his restraints, but there was nothing that gave any clue as to why he was doing it.

Allen Roland was a large man, both in length and width, with quite the muscular build. He had brown hair that went past the shoulders, clearly not having been taken care of in a while and with facial hair of the sort one would expect from not having had any opportunity to shave for four months. He was clad in the regular white-and-black striped prison garb, sitting with his legs crossed, his cuffed hands resting in between, shackles on both legs with chains attached to sturdy loops embedded into the cell walls. He was staring at the surveillance snail with angry, yellow eyes and a scowl on his face. The signal was clear - he was mad for _some_ reason, and they had to deal with it.

"We don't have a choice, do we?" one of the Marines that had been part of the card game said.  
"No... we have to figure out what this is about, and... put a stop to it."  
"I don't like it..."  
"Nobody likes it, but we don't want to give the commander any reason to chew us out."  
"Right. You two stay and keep a look out for anything strange, the rest of us..."  
"We'll pick this game up later, then," another one said and put his hand of cards face down on the table. After grabbing their rifles that had been left resting against the wall, they opened the steel door leading into the now-lit up maximum security level. In single file, the quartet made their short but important march towards what they believed to be the level's only inhabitant. Three of them placed themselves in strategically chosen locations surrounding the innermost part of the level, and one of them - the one appearing to have the highest rank of them - walked up to Allen's cell.  
"What do you want, at this time?" he asked.  
Allen scowled behind his beard and stared at the man in front of him. "How long are you going to keep me here like this?" he growled. "If you're going to kill me, just do it!"  
"The Commander hasn't-"  
"Oh, I know what Roth wants," Allen said. "I'm his trophy. I'm the proof he's the strongest Marine in West Blue, and I'm the key to his promotion."  
"Commander Roth will give the orders of what to do with you when it's been decided," the Marine replied. "There are many who'd want to see you publicly executed for what you've done, or sent to Impel Down."  
"Then tell him to just _do it_ ," Allen shouted. "You can't treat people like this."  
"You don't deserve anything."  
"I haven't been outside for months, and the air in here is stuffy. I don't even get to stretch my legs when you let me use the toilet!"  
"And that's why you're throwing a tantrum now?"  
"You try sitting here, in the same place, in the same position, for months and see how long it takes _you_ to snap," Allen replied. "You wouldn't last a week."  
"Empty words," the Marine said. "Criminals can't expect humane treatment."  
"Big words," Allen said.  
"What do you mean?"  
"You talk about criminals, yet you work for the worst ones of them all..."  
"I will not dignify that with-"

The Marine soldier fell silent as the lights suddenly went out. Allen smirked, knowing nobody could see it.

"What happened? Why did the lights go out?" the soldier asked.  
"How should I know?" Allen said, knowing perfectly well what was going on.  
"Go tell those clowns in the guard room to turn the lights back on!" the soldier shouted to one of his companions. "If this is their idea of a joke, I'll..."  
"Scared?" Allen asked with a chuckle. "You never know what I can do..."  
"You can barely even move with those shackles, and I doubt even you could get through those bars."  
"You're right, I wouldn't worry about me," Allen said as a few impact sounds were heard from elsewhere. Footsteps were closing in from the left, stopping close by.  
"What's going on?" the soldier asked the person who had approached.  
"Sir!" a voice said. "Lights out!"  
"Wha-" was all he managed to say before he got a knee to the stomach followed by a bash to the head, dropping to the floor without spotting his assailant. Allen heard some shuffling around in front of him before the familiar jingle of a keyring, and soon the sound of keys entering a lock, eventually unlocking it. As the gate to his cell swung open, the flame from a match lit up the space immediately in front of him, illuminating a one-eyed, smirking face.  
"And that's how you do it!"


	27. Jailbreak

Allen Roland looked at the figure in front of him. This Rink Kazai, someone he had just met under quite unlikely circumstances, had just taken out - he assumed - at least five Marine soldiers on her own just to free him. She certainly wasn't a normal person...

"Not bad," Allen replied. "How did you..."  
"It wasn't so hard," Rink replied as she walked up to him and lowered the match towards his hands, which were bound by a thick pair of handcuffs. "Well, let's get these off you first."  
"That would help," Allen said as Rink, now holding the match between her teeth, flipped through keys on the keyring, eventually finding one that looked like it would fit in the small lock on the cuffs.  
"This one, I think," she said between gritted teeth and put a hand on the cuffs to insert the key. As soon as she touched them, she shuddered, her knees got weak, and she dropped the match with a gasp before pulling her hand back. "Wh- what the..."  
"Oh, _now_ I get it," Allen said. "You're a devil fruit user."  
"...yes, I am," Rink said. "How did you know?"  
"These are seastone cuffs," Allen replied. "You know about seastone?"  
"I've never come into... well, contact with it personally before," Rink said. "But I know it's a substance that weakens those that have eaten a devil fruit... you, too? That explains a few things."  
"I have a power, yes," Allen answered. "So what can you do?"  
"I'm a sound devil," Rink replied. "I ate the Sound Fruit... and you?"  
"Why don't you get these cuffs off of me, and I'll _show_ you what I can do..."  
"You seem to have been pretty functional with them on," Rink noted.  
"Heh... when you've worn them for as long as I have, you kind of get used to it... you know how much you can do, and... well, it's not like I've been exhausting myself sitting here either. But as long as I have them on, it's impossible for me to use my power..."  
"Right," Rink said and made another attempt, this time holding her Marine cap in between her skin and the cuffs as she put the key in the lock and twisted it, unlocking them. Allen shook his arms, opening them further, before throwing them to the side. They struck the wall before falling to the ground as Allen cracked his knuckles and started raising his arms.  
"Finally," he said as Rink lit another match to see what was going to happen. She noted that he was already hairy and muscular, but both those qualities seemed to improve - and the sinister grin on his face was made into an even more sinister one through the addition of some sharp fangs. Soon, his body was covered in brown fur, and he let out a deep howl as he started pulling on his shackles. They gave some way - but he didn't manage to break them.  
"So... what was that supposed to be?" Rink asked.  
"Heh... guess I need to get back into shape," Allen said and reverted to his human appearance. "I've eaten the Cat Fruit... Hyena type. But, uh... if you'll please..."  
"Right," Rink said and unlocked the rest of his shackles. "Better?"  
"Better," Allen said and started standing up, but stumbled a bit. "Just- hold on a little..."  
"You okay?"  
"I've been sitting like that for months, my legs are... still a bit asleep," Allen said as he was shaking his legs to get the blood flowing again. "I'll be right with you..."  
"You do that, I'll go collect those guards," Rink said.  
"What for?"  
"I figure we'll lock them in your cell for the time being," Rink said. "Anything against that?"  
"Sounds good to me," Allen said. Rink dragged the other two bodies in front the cell before looking around.  
"And move the snails out. Let them figure this out later."  
"Yeah, good idea," Allen replied.  
"Speaking of the snails... were those guys in the guard room the only ones watching the feed?"  
"Probably the only ones actively watching, yes, but everything gets recorded for later review..."  
"Once they look at that - help me reach up here - we're already gone," Rink said before Allen raised her up so she could pick the surveillance snails inside the cell off the walls. "By the way, if you've been down here all this time... how do you know so much about the base?"  
"I wasn't taken here right away," Allen replied as he did some quick stretching for his legs. "I've seen more of it... Roth showed me off for a bit, and even down here, I've picked up information from just talking to the guards. Some of them like talking about things... even if it's with someone like me."  
"Roth?" Rink asked, now with both snails in her hands.  
"You don't know of the oh-so-famous Marine Commander Roth of W4 " Allen asked in response, in a mocking tone, as he carried the three unconscious bodies of the Marine soldiers into the corner of what had until now been his cell and closed the door.  
"Can't say I do," Rink replied as she locked the cell door before the two of them started heading towards the guard room, putting the snails on another wall along the way.  
"Well, you're going to be making him very mad today!"

Inside the guard room on the level, three Marine soldiers sat bound, gagged and knocked out cold against one of the walls. The table had been knocked over, leaving playing cards and loose beli all over the floor. Rink's bag was next to the door on the inside, and she grabbed it as the two of them entered. Allen looked over at the Marines.

"Well, that explains what you did, but I think I had figured it out already..."  
"It was the easiest thing," Rink said. "I just made sure that the snails didn't see more than two of the others that came to you, and marched over here... they didn't suspect anything, and having the initiative was enough to take the both of them out before they could sound any alarm. And the guy who came here afterwards was even easier."  
"So... now what?"  
"Now you help me locate my friend."  
"Alright... I'll do what I can. What's his name?"  
"Markus Flint."  
"Never heard of. Bounty?"  
"Twenty-five million beli."  
Allen gave off a small whistle. "That's not bad for a no-name... what did he do?"  
"Kill a guy."  
"Twenty-five mil for just popping one off?"  
"A mayor... who was also a retired Marine."  
"That makes more sense, but... I've still never heard of that. When did it happen?"  
"Couple days ago."  
"Wait... when was he taken in?"  
"This afternoon. We came here today, and his wanted poster went live yesterday."  
"This after- so he's just been here a few hours, if that?"  
"Correct."  
"Oh, for- then he's not even in the prison proper, he'll still be in processing!"  
"Processing?"  
"It's on the top floor of this tower... floor under it is the entry level, and one floor below that is the first prison level. Each new prisoner spends at least forty-eight hours in processing while they figure out where to put them, and if they should even be here or transferred to another facility. It's like... pre-prison."  
"You sat there, too? Despite... what they took you in for?"  
"Protocol is protocol, all prisoners go through processing," Allen replied. "But I sat in processing for almost three weeks. I think it was partly that Roth wanted to show everyone that he had caught me before stashing me in the basement... but most of the soldiers were also too scared to do anything with me, even though I didn't make myself a threat at all while I was there."  
"Alright, so that explains where we'll find him," Rink said. "Now, then..."  
"Now we raise some hell, get him out, and then we leave this place forever?" Allen asked.  
"Well, no... I'd certainly have nothing against that, but I'm the one who told my companion that there'd be no playing the hero on your own," Rink said. "I have to meet up with her first."  
"You said she was investigating the other tower?"  
"Yeah," Rink said. "If they store prisoners in this one, I guess they store the Marines in the other."  
"That's the gist of it."  
"So I guess I'm going to have to go over there," Rink said and looked towards the door on the other end of the guard room. "So... what's the layout here?"  
"Well, the staircases are on the first layer from the outer wall, but you have to go through each prison level to reach the stairs to the next one," Allen replied. "Then the entry level and processing have their own separate entrances. There's guards on every floor... they're going to spot us. Me. And that's when it's going to get wild around here, because nobody would believe that I was being moved without Roth taking the lead and without any further escort, much less by just one low-ranked Marine..."  
"And going back out the sewers won't be an option," Rink said. "I had to squeeze through the hole to get up here... no way you'd fit."  
"So what do you propose?"  
"You're just going to have to hang out here for a bit," Rink replied and grabbed a rifle in one hand and her bag in another. "You'll know when it's time... and make sure you don't die when it is."

* * *

Muse collected her arrows from the target once more and put them back in her quiver. This had definitely gone on for long enough, she figured... be it by force or not, she'd have to resume looking for Markus.  
"More, more!" the crowd around her shouted. It had grown a little more, and people had started betting on if she'd hit the target or not. She didn't want to entertain them any more, though.  
"No more," she said and folded her bow back up. "I don't... I'm tired."  
"Aw, come on!" came the reactions from the audience. "One more shot!"  
"No," Muse said.  
"Well then..." one of the larger and more drunk soldiers in the crowd said and walked up to her. "Let me keep you company!"  
"Wha-" Muse said as he put his arm around her shoulders. In the space of a few eye blinks, Muse had wriggled free and had an arrow nocked in her bow again, aimed at the chest of her admirer.  
"Whoa, whoa!" he uttered as Muse realized what she was doing and lowered her weapon again.  
"S... sorry, reflex..." she mumbled and put it back into the quiver again. "I... just let me be alone, I need to sleep..."  
"Well, alright, I'll... see you around," the Marine said and turned around. Muse wondered what she had ever done to deserve this when she heard a familiar voice.  
"Morrigan!" it spoke.  
"Ri- um, Sonya?" Muse said as she turned around. The crowd parted as a person familiar to Muse, dressed in a Marine uniform and with thick glasses, walked towards her.  
"There you are! I've been looking all over for you," Rink said and turned to the other Marines. "What were you up to with my sister?"  
"Um, we just..."  
"Nothing! Honestly!" the soldier that had almost gotten an arrow through him said and quickly slipped away, the crowd following him.  
"So... for real, what the hell was that?" Rink asked.  
"I tried to find something out, and... they wanted to see what I could do with the bow," Muse replied.  
"Seriously?" Rink said with a chuckle. "And you just... went along with it?"  
"I figured I'd try to get some information from them, but... it's not like I could just ask, and..."  
"Well, never mind... I've had more luck, if you can call it that," Rink half-whispered. "I know where Markus is."  
"Really? Where?"  
"He's... up there," Rink said and pointed towards the top of the prison tower. "Top floor, and it's going to take some work to get him out. I ran into some, well... complications on the way, but I got the information... and ended up making a promise to break someone else out..."  
"Who?"  
"He's called Allen Roland," Rink said. "They kept him in the basement. Maximum security, and all that."  
"You're sure he's not dangerous?"  
"No, but he knows a lot about this base... I wouldn't have gotten as far as I did without him, and that there hasn't been any alarms yet means he's still where I left him. So, we're going to split their attention..."  
"What's the plan?"  
"Nobody paid any attention to me when I walked through the prison tower, and nobody seems to have suspected you of anything, either... so we have the advantage to begin with. First of all, we're going back to the prison."  
"And then?"  
"Well, I guess it's actually a good thing that you've warmed up... 'cause then it's time to rumble."


	28. Marine Commander Roth of W4

The first alarm sounded through W4 thirty-seven minutes after Rink and Muse had walked through the front gates. An alarm that announced that two people dressed as Marine soldiers had started attacking other Marines at the entrance to the prison tower, followed by another alarm that said that someone was causing trouble in the lower levels of the prison. And soon came the dreaded third alarm, which noted that they had confirmed the identity of that someone. Marines were flooding towards the prison tower to deal with the two problems - a rampaging hyena on the lower floors and two rampaging women on the upper floor, who were good at keeping anyone who came at them at a distance. One of them with a bow, the other one with... the Marines hadn't figured out exactly what they were dealing with there yet, but they had started suspecting a devil fruit.

And through all the alarms and commotion, the base's Commander, Roth, was sleeping soundly in his quarters, on the top floor of the western tower. He went to bed early and had a reputation for being able to sleep through literally any noise, and definitely did not like being disturbed when he was sleeping. But when the situation called for it, there was no choice - and this certainly was an unprecedented situation. He'd like it even less if he woke up to find his prized prisoner gone and the base in even more chaos than it already was.

"Okay... heads or tails?"  
Two Marine privates were standing at the bottom of the stairs that led up to Commander Roth's room, one of them holding up a coin in his right hand.  
"Heads," the other one replied.  
"Okay..." the first one said and flipped the coin, catching it and putting it down on the back of his other hand. "Heads! So you do it."  
"What? I won the flip, so it's you that's doing it!"  
"It was to see who should go!"  
"You have to say that first!"  
"Okay, okay, I'll flip again. If you get what you pick, then you go. Okay?"  
"Okay, fine."  
"Heads or tails?"  
"It came up heads last time, so... heads."  
"Here goes," the one with the coin said before flipping again. "Heads again. Sorry, man, it's you."  
"How about best of three?"  
"No, just do it!"  
"Oh, alright," the loser of the game said and made the dreadful walk up the stairs to the door that was labeled 'COMMANDER' and adorned with the Marine insignia. He opened it and stepped into the room, taking a deep breath before reaching for the light switch, hitting it to illuminate the room.

While Roth wouldn't wake up from sound, he was sensitive to light (a fact that had given him the nickname "the snail" in certain groups of the Marines, from this similarity to the surveillance snails - a nickname everyone made sure he would never know about), and woke up in the mornings when the morning sun broke through the window above his bed. The room was large but quite modest, with a few paintings on the walls and some small glass sculptures here and there. Turning on the lights was thus the best way of waking him up before morning, but he had expressly forbidden anyone from doing so unless it was absolutely necessary, and _he'd_ be the one to decide if it was.

The unlucky messenger saw Roth shifting around in his bed and start grumbling. He didn't say anything as he watched Roth sit up in his bed, face the visitor, squint in his direction, put on a pair of glasses that were lying on his nightstand, grab a glass of water from the same and drink a mouthful before shaking his head and fixating his eyes on the doorway. He had short black hair, a short black moustache and a short black beard, all immaculately trimmed.

"What, pray tell, is going on here? What is this infernal racket, and more importantly, _why_ have I been woken up?" Roth asked in a - to his visitor - frightening tone.  
"We..." he said and swallowed. "We have a problem at the entrance to the prison tower. Two individuals are attacking the guards..."  
"Do you really have to wake _me_ up for that?"  
"And..." the messenger said and closed his eyes. "It's also Roland. He's... escaped, and is..."  
"What. Did. You. _Say?_ " Roth asked. "Because I thought I just heard you say 'Roland escaped'."  
"He is... currently attacking the lower prison levels..."  
" _How?_ " Roth shouted and closed his fist with full force around the glass he was holding, breaking it into shards.  
"We... don't know," the private said. "But..."  
"When I find out who's fault this is, I will _personally_ see them drawn and quartered," Roth said and stood up. "Wake up _every_ soldier in the base! Have them stop Roland at _any_ cost!"  
"That is... already being done. But... we are having difficulties getting them through..."  
"And then..." Roth said as he started getting dressed. "How many of the four are on base?"  
"Only Carime and Cagizo, sir," the messenger said said. "They are already on their way to the prison tower. The others have been notified, but..."  
"Very well... they know what to do," Roth said and kneeled down next to the bed to tie his shoes. "Roland... once I'm done with you, you'll never see the sun again for as long as you live..."

Roth stood up, put the empty glass back on the nightstand and grabbed a mace that was hanging over his bed before leaving his room. He wasn't going to let his most prized prisoner get out, not after all the work he had done to claim him...

* * *

Rink and Muse's plan to get into processing had, really, been remarkably simple. It consisted of two steps:

1\. Ask to be allowed into the prison, and by extension, processing.  
2\. If denied, break in anyway.

Optimally they had wanted to reach Markus before blowing their cover, but step one had failed based on the guards being more suspicious of people trying to get _in_ to the prison tower than _out_ of it, even if they were wearing Marine uniforms. Since they had no identification, or any way to prove that they were who they said they were - especially since they weren't who they said they were - or anyone who could back them up, the rigid base protocol meant they weren't entering the prison today. Nobody had paid any notice to Rink wanting to leave, since someone who already _was_ on the inside had obviously gone through the protocol for entry already and didn't need to be checked while going out, or so they at least thought.

Thus, step two was currently underway. They were situated in the walkway between the two towers, right in front of the entrance to the prison tower. On the other side of that door were the paths into the prison proper and to processing, and taking the fight at this point served the additional purpose of preventing reinforcements to reach the prison, giving Allen an easier time. Rink had taken care of all the Marines that came from behind them, and was now trying to force her way through the steel door into the prison. One of the keys she had taken from the basement guards actually seemed to work, but the door opened inwards and the Marines had barricaded it on the other side. Muse was keeping the forces coming from the western tower at a distance, having used her arrows to set up a barrier of fire. As the volume of Marines increased, however, that wasn't going to hold... they'd get through eventually, and hopefully they'd be further into the prison by then.

"Are you having any luck?" Muse asked Rink while planting an arrow in an approaching Marine soldier's knee.  
"It's getting there," Rink replied and took another deep breath before screaming at the door in front of her. It was shaking, but still didn't give. "But part of me wishes I had actually played the hero and broken through from the inside with Allen..."  
"Too late for that now," Muse replied and added another two burning arrows to the barrier. "I'm going to run out of arrows at this rate, though..."  
"Tell me if you need backup or want to switch," Rink said before launching a high-pitched yell at the door. If nothing else, she was giving the guards on the other side quite the headache. "If nothing else, we'll get through when Allen..."  
"If he makes it," Muse noted.  
"Sometimes I find myself agreeing with James about you," Rink said.  
Muse chose not to reply and kept firing her arrows into the oncoming crowd. Not much changed for a short while, until some sort of commotion - more than the expected one - was heard on the other side of the burning arrows. Before Muse or Rink had much time to react to it, something flew through the air in their direction, and a bunch of the flames were exhausted. Only moments later, the fire was almost entirely gone, but the Marines didn't start storming towards them. Instead, they were standing on the sides of the corridor, and in the middle...  
"Watch out!" Rink said and threw herself at Muse, dragging her to the ground. A fraction of a second later, something passed over them and struck the metal door.  
"What was-" Muse said as they quickly got on their feet again.  
"I don't know, but it was fast, and would have hurt," Rink said and pointed down the corridor. "But I bet that it came from _that_ one."  
"Who, or... what is that?" Muse asked.  
"I think we're going to find out whether we like it or not," Rink replied.

In between the lined up Marines, a figure was walking towards them. Muse sent an arrow in their direction, but the person raised their arm and the arrow harmlessly bounced off of... what appeared to be some sort of armour.

"This is all?" they said, their voice revealing them to be female before she came close enough for her appearance to confirm it. She had very short blue hair, and was wearing mainly blue shielding on her arms and legs. In her right hand, she was carrying a bottle.  
"L-lady Cagizo!" one of the soldiers she was passing said. "They're... they're not normal!"  
"I can see that they're not," she said and took a swig from the bottle. However, she didn't swallow it, instead just seemed to swirl it around in her mouth... before spitting three times towards Rink and Muse. Rink shoved Muse away, dodged two of whatever it was that came flying towards her and raised her arm guard to block a third. It made an audible impact, and the following splash told Rink what they were dealing with. Somehow, this Cagizo woman was spitting water at them with very high pressure, which would hurt quite a lot to get hit by.  
"Cover your ears," Rink told Muse and took a few quick steps towards Cagizo and the other Marines. She took a deep breath and let out a long yell in their direction, and while practically all of the other soldiers were pushed back or fell over themselves, Cagizo crossed her shielded arms in front of her face and didn't seem bothered at all.  
"I see," she said and lowered her arms before launching another barrage of water projectiles towards them. "Has my little brother shown his face yet?"  
"We haven't seen sir Carime," one of the soldiers replied.  
"Typical," Cagizo said and resumed her attack. Rink and Muse counterattacked to the best of their abilities, but Cagizo's defense was impressive. Not only did she have those shields on her arms and legs, but turned out to be wearing a thick one on her back as well that could defend against even stronger attacks. Rink and Muse found themselves pushed back, and were soon standing with their backs against the door.  
"No... I can't die here... Markus..." Muse said.  
"My only regret is that I didn't get to-" Rink started saying before falling silent and turning to Muse. "When I say now, fall to the floor! Not yet... not yet... NOW!"

Muse dropped down, followed by Rink doing the same a moment afterwards. Rink rolled around, faced the door and let out a scream. This time, it gave a little more way than usual, and as Muse saw Cagizo confidently walk towards them, the door swung open. Cagizo stopped for a moment, which the duo used to leap through the door, almost jumping onto a confused Allen in his half-beast form.

"Shut it, _shut it!_ " Rink yelled. Allen looked out to see a blue figure heading towards him, and quickly closed the door. He placed himself with his back against it, soon feeling it shudder as a heavy impact was heard from the other side - obviously Cagizo trying to get through. Rink locked the door, but knew that wasn't going to hold. She looked around, spotting several knocked out and bleeding Marines scattered around the room. "You've been busy."  
"Are you sure you thought this through?" Allen asked Rink.  
"Not anymore, no," Rink replied. "So what's the status on this side?"  
"Well, we have to get past the door into processing too, and that's the stairs, so..."  
"Right. Also, who's that blue one?"  
"Cagizo... one of the four knights of W4. I should've told you about them... four siblings, the strongest soldiers belonging to this base, after Roth..."  
"Are you telling me we have to deal with four of those _plus_ the guy who managed to capture _you_?"  
"It's rare that all four of them are on base at once, so probably not," Allen said.  
"She mentioned a... Carime, I think," Muse added.  
"If Cagizo and Carime are the only ones here today then we dodged the worst of them," Allen said. "I did _not_ want to run into Cabiru as well today."  
"So, stairs to processing... door? Lock? Anything?" Rink asked.  
"Locked but less of a door than this one," Allen replied as he pressed his back towards the door. "We should be able to break it down... and speaking of doors breaking down, I think we need to do something about this one."  
"Right," Rink said and looked around. "Muse, help me drag that desk over here!"  
"Okay," Muse replied. The two of them collected whatever heavy things they could find in the room - mostly desks - to barricade the door with.  
"That should give us a few minutes," Rink said and looked towards a door on the other side of the room, the door she had passed through on her way up through the prison earlier. "And... no risk of anyone coming from there?"  
"They won't be standing up for quite a while," Allen said as he shifted into full hyena form and rushed to another door on all fours. "Anyway, here's where we need to go up... there's a couple guards up there as well."  
"If you can crack the door, then leave the next part to us," Rink said and looked at Muse. "Ready?"  
"Ready," Muse said and readied an arrow in her bow. "Only a few more arrows to go, though..."  
"It'll have to do," Rink said and nodded towards the door.  
"Here goes," Allen said, took a few steps back and then charged towards the door, easily breaking it off its hinges. On the other side was a stairway leading upwards, and at the top of it was a makeshift barricade with a couple of rifles pointing out of it. Some gunfire started raining down towards the trio, but they easily sidestepped it.  
"It's almost cute compared to the stuff outside," Rink said and struck her arm guard with a tuning fork. Peeking into the stairway, she swung it twice towards the barricade before letting out a yell in its direction, knocking over parts of it and disorienting most of the guards. Allen and Muse quickly joined her in the stairway, Muse utilizing one of her lightning arrows to knock out a few more as Allen charged upwards, attacking with full force. Some of the Marines started tumbling down the stairs, and those that were still standing were quickly dealt with by Allen. He started striking the door at the top, and it gave way shortly. At the same time, a loud crash was heard from the entrance - and in the now open doorway was Cagizo, sporting a sinister smile.  
"You're going to regret ever coming here!" she yelled. Rink and Allen looked at each other and then at Muse, before Rink threw the bag with Markus's swords to Muse.  
"You go on and find Markus! We'll keep her away!" she shouted at Muse.  
"Are you... going to be fine?" Muse asked.  
"Gonna be easier to deal with her in a large room than a corridor," Rink said. "And with Allen..."  
"Just hurry up," Allen said and looked at Cagizo coming towards them.  
"Alright... thanks," Muse said before continuing up the stairs.  
"We'll be with you shortly, I hope..." Rink said.  
Muse at first didn't say anything as she walked through the open door, but as she heard the first sound of battle behind her, she closed her eyes for a moment. "Don't die," she whispered - knowing that probably not even Rink would be able to hear it.


	29. Someone to protect

Despite all the commotion going on underneath, processing was remarkably calm. The layout was simple - a corridor in the middle, branching out into side corridors with small holding cells lining them. Muse peered down the first one, but saw nothing. Standing in the main corridor, she called out.

"Markus!" she shouted. There was no reply at first. "Markus! Where are you?"  
"What?" came a call from somewhere. Not Markus.  
"What's going on?" came another. Also not Markus.  
"Let me sleep!" came a third. Not Markus, either.  
" _Markus!_ " Muse shouted again, louder this time.  
"I'm... here!" a finally familiar voice said. Muse ran towards it, turning left into a corridor halfway down the hall. She looked to her sides while dashing through it, and eventually saw, sitting in a cell...  
"Markus!" she exclaimed. He was still wearing the same clothes he had been wearing when they took him in - processing presumably involved getting prisoner's rags for the new inmates, at least.  
"What are you-"  
"Hold on," Muse said and drew an arrow, aiming at the cell's lock from close range. The impact easily broke the lock, and she stepped into the cell, holding her hand out towards Markus. "Now, come on!"  
"What are you doing?" Markus asked. "Why are you..."  
"What do you think?" Muse replied. "We're here to get you out!"  
"We?" Markus asked. "You mean..."  
"It's me and Rink," Muse said. "We found our way in and-"  
"What were you thinking?" Markus asked.  
"...what?"  
"This is... it's far too dangerous-"  
"Don't even..."  
"-you shouldn't have-"  
" _Shut up!_ " Muse shouted to interrupt him. "Don't you _dare!_ "  
"Wh- what?" Markus asked. "I'm just wor-"  
"After all you've done for me, after all the times you've put yourself at risk for me, after all these years, after _everything_... don't you even _dare_ tell me off when I come to rescue _you_ for once!"  
"Muse..." Markus said, taken aback. "You're... you're angry!"  
"Because of how you-"  
"No, I mean... you're _angry_ ," Markus said with a smile. "I've... never seen you this open before, not since... that day..."  
"I-" Muse said. "I just..."  
"You can finally get angry at me..." Markus said. "You're starting to-"  
"I'm here to get you out, and we're leaving _now_ ," Muse said over him. "Because it's my turn to... do you remember what you told me the day we left North Blue...?"  
"What?" Markus asked.  
"You said..."

* * *

 _Six years earlier..._

"Are you alright, miss?"

Muse opened her eyes. Everything was fuzzy... but there was... someone above her. A face... _Emaku? No... can't be, he's far away..._

"Miss?"

Muse shook her head and tried to focus. She didn't recognize the face, unsurprisingly... but that didn't mean it was a good thing. She sat up with a snap, the man standing above her just managing to avoid getting his jaw introduced to her forehead. She slowly stood up, but before she managed to take a step, she fell to her knees, shaking and coughing.

"Miss, do you need any help?"

Muse ignored the voice as she tried standing up again, but found herself unable to do so. She crawled towards the edge of her small boat, dragging herself towards the sandy beach. She immediately collapsed, and as her vision faded to black again, the last thing she could remember was a pair of arms around her while the voice kept trying to get her attention.

When Muse finally managed to open her eyes again, she blinked a few times in surprise as what she saw above her wasn't the sky but a ceiling. She found herself lying in a bed inside a house, and frantically looked around to figure out what was going on. She saw her quiver hanging on a chair that stood against the wall, and her coat neatly folded on the seat. Underneath, the shoes she had been wearing.

 _Those are my things..._ Muse thought. _Where... where am I?_ she asked herself as she tried to sit up, but immediately fell back with another cough.

"Careful, miss... don't push yourself," came a man's voice... the same voice she had heard at the beach. "You need to rest."  
"I... where..." Muse said as she tried to find the source of the voice. She soon found it - a man wearing a dark coat. She closed her eyes and gave off a small shriek before trying to get out of the bed, but in her state all she managed to do was fall half out of it. The man was quickly there to help her back up, but she reeled back at his touch.  
"What's wrong, miss? I'm not going to hurt you."

Muse stared at him, as if she wasn't sure if she should believe him or not, with how she had been hurt by nearly everyone she had ever been close to. She had been cast out by those she called family... exiled by her tribe... and then there was...

"You're... you're not from Zyklos?" she managed to ask, regretting the question as soon as she had asked it. That wasn't information she wanted to volunteer, but she wasn't exactly thinking straight right now.  
"Zyklos? Miss, I don't even know what that is," Markus replied with a chuckle, followed by a frown. "I saw your boat and dragged it ashore, and you collapsed when trying to move. If I hadn't found you, you probably would have died..."  
"No one ever helps me..." she said in a quiet tone. "I... don't deserve..."  
"Miss, if I had planned on hurting you, I would have done so while you were unconscious," he said with a sigh. "I certainly wouldn't have bothered saving your life."  
"But... why..."  
"Because I am a doctor, miss," Markus said as he picked up a bowl from a nearby table and sat down on the bed. "It's what I do. Here, I made you some gruel. You're very dehydrated and malnourished... you need to recover."  
"A doctor..." Muse's expression changed slightly. "Then... you're..."  
"Let's take these things one at a time," Markus said as he lifted her head up slightly and propped it up with a pillow, before moving a spoon filled with something mostly colourless and mostly odourless towards her mouth. "And first of all, you need to eat."

Muse opened her mouth, allowing the doctor to spoon-feed her the gruel. It turned out to be mostly flavourless as well and Muse made her opinion of it quietly known, but he assured her that it was the best thing to give malnourished patients. They slowly finished the bowl, and Markus made her drink a couple of glasses of water as well. She felt some life starting to return to her body, but...

"Are you feeling better?" Markus asked and put the empty glass on the little table next to the bed.  
"Yes..." Muse meekly replied.  
"That's a relief," he said. "By the way, miss... what's your name?"  
"My name..." Muse repeated. "I'm Miryn- no, Muse."  
"Miryn Muse, is it?"  
"No... just Muse," Muse said. "Miryn was... no... nevermind."  
"Alright," Markus said and extended his hand towards her. "Nice to meet you, miss Muse. I'm Markus Flint."  
"Th... thanks..." Muse said and shook his hand.  
"Now try to get some more rest, I'll go out and shop and make us a proper dinner later," Markus said before leaving the room.

She remained in the bed for a few minutes, before looking over at her quiver again. "I'll rest... but not here..." she said to herself and slowly sat up, moving her legs off the bed, pushing herself to a stand. She walked over to the chair that held her belongings and put on her shoes, coat, and quiver, before looking for an exit. She didn't want to leave the front door unlocked, so... she opened a window and slowly climbed out, shutting it behind her and noting that it couldn't be opened from the other side. She was thankful for what Markus had done for her... but she didn't want to impose on him any more. It wouldn't end well either way... if there was one thing she thought she had learned of the world outside of Puamoku, it was that everyone in it was only out for themself...

The sun had already set as Muse looked around the area. She wanted to find her way back to her boat, so she started heading down a road that she thought looked like it could lead away from the city. She only had one real memory of what it looked like when she got out of the boat, and there weren't any buildings in said memory. She kept walking, passing a few people but didn't want to ask anyone for the way. She kept her gaze mostly fixated on the road right in front of her.

After a while, she looked up, and found that she had ended up in some more run-down district. She looked around, and concluded that this definitely wasn't what she was looking for... she considered turning around, but before she could, she heard a voice coming from her right.

"Ooh, what do we have here?" it said. Muse looked over, spotting two men standing in an alleyway.  
"I'd say it looks like an easy target," a voice from her left said. Two more men over there.  
"And a girl, at that... better savour this one!" the other of the two on the left said as they stepped out of their alley.  
"Let's party, boys," a voice from behind her said. She turned around, seeing yet another scruffy-looking man stepping out from a dark doorway.  
"Just save a piece for me," a final voice sounded from in front of her. Six people in total, surrounding her... holding knives, bats, chains... Muse sighed.  
 _Of course... more people who want to hurt me..._ she thought, reaching back for her bow.  
"You're mine!" one of the men who had come from her right shouted, brandishing a long knife. Muse hoped she had recovered enough to handle this...

With as swift a motion as she could manage, she unfolded her bow and nocked an arrow, firing it towards the man that was coming at her. Her aim was less than true, however, and it flew past him and only struck a wall. The man only paused momentarily before continuing his stride, and the two from the left had started approaching her as well. She drew another arrow, this time firing it up into the air. A moment later, a resounding boom rang out as a small lightning bolt struck one of the men on her left, the other one stumbling backwards from the shock. The man on her right paused his attack from the surprise, and Muse used this opportunity to send another arrow his way - this one finding its goal, hitting him in the right shoulder. He dropped his knife before dropping to his knees, clutching the wound. Muse didn't have any time to pause, though - the man that hadn't gotten hit by her lightning bolt was back on her case, and the other one from the alley on the right was closing in as well, carrying a wooden bat. She readied another arrow and fired it in his direction, and he held up his bat to block it. A smirk appeared on his face as the arrow struck the bat, but it was soon replaced when the arrow - and, thus, the bat as well - burst into flame. Before he had figured out what was going on, another arrow came - this one hitting his chest. He fell to the ground, and Muse just managed to turn around and strike the man coming at her from the other direction in the head with her bow. But before she could get another arrow out, she felt something hit her in the back, and she dropped to her knees followed by getting a chain held across her throat.

"That's enough out of you," the man behind her said. "Do you know what you've done?"  
"I don't care," Muse whispered and looked up. The man standing in front of her had pulled out two pistols, aiming them at her.  
"Oh, this bitch," he said. "You're going to pay for this, and you only made it worse for yourself!"  
"Just get it over with," Muse said and closed her eyes. "I'm used to being hurt..."  
"After what you just did, don't think you're getting away with just a bit of-"  
"And what do you think you are doing?" a voice familiar to Muse asked. "Ganging up on one poor girl?"  
Muse looked up. It was dark, but she could see that behind the man in front of her, another one had appeared... wearing black, and holding...  
"What-" was all the man with the pistols said, as Markus put a hand on his shoulder and the tip of a sword at the back of his neck.  
"You better drop those, or I'll run you through where you stand..."  
"Don't forget we have this girl!" the man holding the chain said.  
"No you don't," Muse whispered. She had noticed that the appearance of Markus had made him lessen his grip on the chain somewhat, giving her room to plant her elbow in the man's crotch, causing him to double over in pain. Muse sat down on the ground, not having any energy left to do much more.  
"Why do you-" the man with the pistols said.  
"Drop them, _now._ "  
"But- I- gah!" the man shouted before throwing his pistols to the side and running away. Those of the group that could still walk collected those who couldn't, and the street soon emptied except for Markus and Muse, after a final shout of "This isn't over!"

"Brutes, the lot of them," Markus said as he put his sword back in its sheath and walked over to Muse, still sitting down with her bow beside her. "Are you alright, miss Muse? What were you doing in _this_ part of town? It's not safe here."  
"Why did you... come after me?" Muse asked with just the slightest hint of desperation in her voice. "I didn't ask for your help!"  
"Because I got worried when you just disappeared like that, of course," Markus said. "Good thing I did, too... you could have gotten seriously hurt."  
"That's... all?"  
"That's all."  
"And you... you actually defended me..."  
"I can't just let an innocent person get picked on, can I?"  
"So then why would you do so much for... for someone like me?"  
"Miss, please... I'm a doctor. Caring for people is what I _do_ ," Markus said. "I promised my father that I would help anyone who needs it, no matter who they are... and if there's one thing I can see clearer than anything else right now, it's that you, miss Muse, are in need of my help. And I wish to give it to you."  
"I don't want to cause trouble..."  
"You are no trouble at all, miss Muse," Markus said and squatted down in front of her. "Please, just stay with me for now. I will protect you, for as long as you need it... and even longer, if you want."  
"But... why?" Muse asked, still trying to understand why he was willing to do this for her.  
"I've been trying to tell you that I don't need any reason," Markus replied. "Helping others is a reason in itself."

That's when it burst for Muse. Markus's continuing displays of kindness made everything she had been through since the night of the storm come rushing to the surface all at once, and she started crying. Crying like she never had before, tears rolling down her face in continuous streams, her eyes and cheeks reddening, sniffing and screaming.

"There, there..." Markus said and laid his arms around her. "Just let it out. I'm here for you... I don't know what you've been through, but there's no reason for you to go it alone anymore."  
"I... I'm... you..." was all Muse managed to say through the tears. She grabbed on to Markus and buried her face in his shoulder, before he helped her get on her feet again.  
"Come on, now... there's dinner waiting for us. At _home_ ," Markus said, with emphasis on the last word. With his arm around her shoulders, and Muse holding on to Markus's shirt, they started walking back towards Markus's place, with Muse's tears not stopping until they were inside again.

But they were the last tears she would shed for several years to come.

 _To be continued in Volume 04: On the run_


	30. Always

_**A word from the author**_

 _Better late than never in adding this note, I guess - here's where the fourth volume of Pure Corruption begins, and it's called "On the run"! Do enjoy!  
_

* * *

Under Markus's watch, Muse soon recovered her strength. He let her sleep in his bed while he dutifully slept on the sofa, and made sure she had three full meals a day. She never went outside without Markus by her side again, and would never speak to anyone on her own. Upon asking, Markus found that she refused to talk about her past, and all he managed to wriggle out of her was that what she had mentioned that first day - "Zyklos" - was some kind of company or organization that she had once worked for and escaped from. Beyond that, he could see that the subject made her uncomfortable, so he never brought it up again. The threat from the thugs Muse had dealt with that first day did become reality when they were attacked while training on the beach one day, but with Markus and Muse working together - and Muse back her usual self with the bow - their assailants couldn't even come close to touching them. Both of them were good fighters in their own right, with Muse as a training/sparring partner Markus's skills with his swords increased even faster - and as a team, they were even more efficient.

While Muse was unwilling to speak of her past, Markus explained all that had happened to him, with his father, with Galt, with the clinic burning down. How he was training for a future confrontation, and how he was trying to track Galt down. Muse said she'd help Markus in any way she could, but remained apprehensive about doing things on her own. Following several leads that Markus dug up, some flimsier than others, they did some traveling in North Blue, and in general, their travels brought them closer to the point where the Grand and Red Lines met.

The years passed, until one day, while on an island not far from Reverse Mountain...

"Muse!" Markus exclaimed as he entered the room they were renting at an inn, holding a newspaper. "I've... I've finally found him!"  
"You've... Galt?" Muse asked. "For real this time?"  
"Yes!" Markus replied and held up the newspaper. "Look at this..."  
"This is not from here..." Muse said as she read the headlines, one of them announcing 'Galt named new mayor'."  
"It's a West Blue paper, from almost nine months ago... here, it says... 'Former Marine Hero Galt has been chosen as the new mayor of Kurita. After a highly successful tour in the North Blue force, Galt chose to retire, and returned to his home island one and a half years ago, where he pursued a political career'..."  
"So... one and a half years, and nine months..."  
"He left North Blue over two years ago, no wonder I could never find anything solid towards him..." Markus said. "But now, I know where he is... and where he'll stay. This island called Kurita... in West Blue..."  
"So... what are you going to do?"  
"I've... already made my choice," Markus said. "I asked around down at the docks..."  
"And?"  
"I've... managed to secure a spot on a cargo transport ship to West Blue that leaves three days from now," Markus said. "It's a long and uncomfortable trip, but... there's room for one more. I made sure of that..."  
"You mean..."  
"I know that you have your home here, even if I don't know where, and I don't know when, or... if we can ever return..." Markus said. "So I fully understand if you don't want to..."  
"No," Muse said and shook her head. "There is... nothing left for me here any more. I owe you my life... I'll follow you anywhere."  
"I can't put into words how much that means to me," Markus said and put his hand on Muse's. "We'll... have to start preparing right away."  
"How?"  
"I was told we could bring with us one crate of no more than thirty kilos, plus whatever we can carry on our persons... they said to prioritize bringing food, water and money. They would provide some bread and water... but no guarantees it would last the whole trip."  
"We don't have much..."  
"We'll bring as many medical supplies, food, and water as we can," Markus said. "Anything we have that we can't bring, we sell for any price we can get, and bring as much cash we can carry... we have a few hundred thousand beli, and the trip costs thirty thousand per person, plus ten for the cargo."  
"Okay," Muse replied.  
"And then... we find our way to this island of Kurita, and..."  
"What if he still has that big guy with him? Can we really..."  
"I've waited this long," Markus said. "Once we're there... we'll gather as much information as we can without raising suspicion, and... wait for an opportunity to present itself. It's all we can do."  
"I'll help in any way I can," Muse said.  
"I know," Markus replied. "Without you, I don't know what I'd do."

The day of the departure arrived quickly. Markus and Muse stood in front of the ship that would take them to West Blue, a large cargo vessel. They were two of a group of twenty people making the trip, a trip that would be done in the ship's hold. Travel between the four seas was not an easy task for those outside the Marines, and they did not take any regular passengers. There were passenger ships, but they were considered luxury and few could hope to afford a such a comfortable way of travel. Thus, going on a cargo ship was by far the most common method. Technically it wasn't legal to bring people as cargo, but it was exceedingly rare to get in trouble for it, as even when thorough inspections did happen (and they could often be avoided by slipping the inspectors a few thousand beli), the only things they could get in trouble for was transporting cargo that in itself was dangerous or illegal, or outright smuggling. It was only if any of the passengers were wanted criminals that any harsher punishment came into play.

In that regard, it was considered safe travel - but long and boring, and not many people had any reason to leave their home Blue. The main danger of the trips was pirate attacks on the cargo ships - the common routes had gotten a greater Marine presence in the later years, and most cargo vessels were equipped with cannons and weaponry for the crew to defend their ship with. But a primary principle was that human life was worth more than whatever they were freighting, and _most_ pirates that attacked had a far greater interest in the cargo than any passengers (any pirates that were of the opposite mindset were far more likely to target the actual passenger ships), even if they wouldn't pass up the opportunity to shake them down for their money as well. Travelers knew it was always a possibility - but the chances of getting where you were going alive while traveling by cargo ship was, on average, greater than any of the alternatives.

Markus and Muse watched as the last crates were hauled up to the ship and presumably into the cargo hold with a crane. The ship's captain checked off all the cargo on a list, then faced the group of travelers.

"Alright, that's all of it. Line up, and give me your name, age and home island as you board. Have your travel fee ready."  
"Home island..." Muse said quietly and turned to Markus. "I don't want to tell him where I come from..."  
"Just tell them the island where we met, then," Markus replied, holding a wad of bills in his hand. "It's not like they can check, and you're not using your real name either."  
"Okay..." Muse replied. One by one, the people in front of them walked up the gangplank to the deck, until it was their turn.  
"Markus Flint, twenty-four, Calbia," Markus said and handed the captain the money . "I'll be paying for myself, the lady after me, and one crate."  
"Very good, proceed on board," the captain said and wrote down Markus's information on his list. "Next!"  
"Um..." Muse said as she stepped up to the captain, looking down at the ground. "Muse... twenty-two... Midu."  
"Alright, proceed on board. Next!"  
Markus grabbed Muse's hand as she walked up to him. "See, that wasn't so bad, was it?"  
"No..." Muse said. She still found unfamiliar people and crowds a little scary, even if she was starting to get a handle on it. She held on to Markus as they walked up on the deck, where another crewman was waiting for them, directing them to a ladder down into the cargo hold. They climbed down, watching some other of the ship's staff walk around to mark crates and write more things down on more lists. When all twenty passengers had found their way down, and all the cargo had been checked, the crewmembers started climbing up, with the last one turning to address the traveling group.  
"Alright, welcome aboard the _Crusty Hammer_ ," he said. "We'll be leaving for West Blue momentarily, and once we've cast off, there's no changing your mind or leaving the boat. We will send down bread and water daily, but if you didn't bring any on your own, then you will likely go hungry. There's two toilets in the stern, if you need water for cleaning there's a small hatch by them where you can collect sea water if you have a container for it. Any questions?"  
"No," was the collective response by the travelers.  
"Well then, make yourselves comfortable!" the crewman said before starting to climb up the ladder. "When you see the sun next time we'll be in West Blue!"

As the cargo hatch closed, Markus and Muse sat down against one of the walls on a blanket they had brought. They put down all their bags, and Markus opened one to take out two bottles of water, handing one to Muse.  
"I can't thank you enough for this," Markus said. "You have been a great help for me, and now... you even want to come with me to another part of the world."  
"There is... nothing left for me here anyway..."  
"I can't give you much in return, but... at least, I promise you..."  
"What?"  
"I promise..." Markus started and grabbed Muse's hand. "I'll always..."

* * *

"...'protect you'. That's what you told me!" Muse said as she grabbed Markus's arm. "Now it's my turn..."  
Markus looked down, closed his eyes and smiled. "You're right. I'm sorry. I appreciate that you've come, so..."  
"Now come on," Muse said and handed him the bag she had brought. "You'll need these."  
"What is..." Markus said and opened it, finding his swords inside. "Oh."  
"Just hurry up," Muse said.  
"You've definitely found your confidence again," Markus said with a chuckle. "You said you were with Rink... where is she?"  
"Taking care of a problem downstairs," Muse replied. "She and..."  
"And who?"  
"Just... come on," Muse said, not answering.  
"You didn't do anything dumb, did you?"  
" _I_ didn't," Muse replied.  
"Should we help?" Markus asked as he made sure his swords were secure in their holders.  
"They said to wait for them," Muse replied, sounding slightly less sure of herself than she had been a moment ago. "And I... trust her."  
"Was this her idea?"  
"She... I wanted to save you, and she... they..."  
"James and Mirise are here, too?"  
"No, they're... they're making sure we can escape," Muse said as several loud bangs were heard from under them. Screams, roars, clangs, sounds that couldn't come from anything but Rink.  
"Are you sure we shouldn't help?" Markus asked as they went back into the main corridor of processing.  
"Yes!" Muse said. "If they wanted us to help, they would let us know!"

A few sounds of heavy slams later, Muse and Markus heard footsteps rushing up the stairs. Markus thought it sounded like more than two pairs of feet, a surprise that only lasted until he saw Allen in full beast form enter the room.  
"Are you alright?" Muse asked.  
"For now," Rink said, sporting a couple bruises, but nothing that appeared too serious. Allen was mostly the same, with a bit of blood trickling down from a small wound on his forehead. "But-"  
"But she's still alive, so she'll be after us when she can walk again," Allen filled in as he changed back into a human - a naked one, as the prisoner's clothes he had been given hadn't been fitted to accommodate his transformations as well and had thusly been ripped to shreds from the recent action. "No time to chat."  
"You're not wearing any-" Muse started.  
"I know," Allen replied with a self-congratulatory grin. "If I have anything you haven't seen before, save the thanks for later."  
"You wish," Rink quipped.  
"So, how do we get out?" Markus asked to steer the conversation back into a direction more relevant to their current situation.  
"Fire escape to the roof," Allen replied. "Nobody's coming from there, but..."  
"They'll be coming from _there_ soon," Rink said and pointed to the stairs behind them.  
"So, where..." Markus started.  
"End of the room," Allen said. " _Go!_ "

The four of them quickly made their way to the end of the corridor (ignoring various cries from other inhabitants of processing to free them as well), finding to their left a ladder leading towards a hatch in the ceiling. Muse climbed up first, followed by Markus, Rink, and finally Allen. As they came out on the roof of W4's prison tower, they soon spotted a small group of Marine soldiers standing on the section connecting the towers, with one in the middle starting to walk towards them. He was sporting a brown mohawk and was wearing an open brown leather jacket on top of his Marine shirt, and brown leather pants.  
"And there's the next one," Allen said, mostly to himself.  
"I've been waiting for you," the Marine with the mohawk said.  
"Who are you?" Rink asked.  
"W4's finest," he replied.  
"That's Carime," Allen said. "Figured we'd run into him as well..."  
"So he's another one like that Cagizo," Rink said.  
"I hear you've met my sister," Carime said. "And that you're still alive means..."  
"She's fine," Allen said. "Look, there's four of us, and just two of us dealt with Cagizo, you don't-"  
"You think I can't take all four of you?" Carime said with a laugh and grabbed on to the handles of something he was wearing at his hips, one in each hand. "I wouldn't be a knight of W4 if I couldn't even handle four simple ruffians!"  
" 'Simple ruffians', he says," Rink said. "He knows who you are, right?"  
"Dude's got an ego," Allen replied. "But make no mistake, he's good..."  
"Of course I am," Carime replied and snapped his hands out to the sides, revealing him to be holding a thorned whip in each hand. He ran a few steps towards them before jumping and raising his hands.  
"Watch out!" Muse exclaimed as he came down, smashing both whips into the ground where they had just been standing. Muse and Allen had stepped to the left, Rink and Markus to the right, and they were all now looking at this new opponent.  
"At least you get to meet new people when you do things like this," Markus said as he drew his swords.  
Rink looked at him with a critical eye for a moment before holding up her left arm, and on the other side of Carime's whips, Muse had pulled out an arrow and Allen was shifting into half-beast form.

Nobody had ever said getting Markus out would be _easy_...


	31. Knights of W4

Rink and Allen's bout with Cagizo on the prison entrance floor had been short, intense, and painful. Despite the door being wide open, the other soldiers had not entered, not really being fond of what might result from being caught in the crossfire between Cagizo and two opponents with devil fruit powers...

"I'm not going to regret punching your stupid face in," Allen had belatedly replied to Cagizo's opening statement.  
"Like you could," Cagizo said. "You've been down there for so long I'm surprised there's any life left in you at all."  
"But now I'm out," Allen said. "And I've gotten a good warm up."  
"And then there's your friend..." Cagizo said and looked over at Rink. "You've made quite the mess here."  
"Shows how much your precious security protocols are good for," Rink said.  
"Protocols can always fail and that's why I'm here," Cagizo replied. "You're lucky my older siblings are off base, but that doesn't mean you'll be any less dead by the time I'm through with you."  
"You think Roth would like that?" Allen asked.  
"I told Commander Roth he should have executed you right away, but he insisted on keeping you," Cagizo said. "Now he'll have to see I was right!" she continued and took a swig from her bottle. One of her bottles, at any rate - Rink noted that she carried several of them on a belt around her waist.  
"Here it comes," Rink said and looked closely at Cagizo's head. Allen, in full hyena form, hunched down to prepare for a dash. Cagizo directed her first barrage in his direction, just barely grazing him with one water projectile as he launched. Allen dodged a swing of her arm and attempted to strike her, but she brought up one of her legs to block. He quickly withdrew, dodging another water blast on the way. Rink, meanwhile, wasn't waiting - the instant Allen drew back, she started pelting Cagizo with sound bullets. Quicker, but weaker than the ones she'd normally use, but enough to annoy Cagizo - who turned to Rink, raised one of her arms to block the attacks and took another swig from the bottle she was holding. She sent three water shots towards Rink, who ducked - and with Rink having Cagizo's attention, Allen had used the opportunity to circle around Cagizo and attack her legs from behind. She fell backwards, almost on top of Allen, the shell-shield on her back striking the concrete floor with a loud bang. Allen quickly turned around and leapt towards her for another attack, but she rolled to the right, quickly got on her knees and struck Allen with her left arm, sending him tumbling across the floor.  
"Don't get so cocky just because there's two of you!" Cagizo said with a snarl as she stood back up.  
"Just spitting water at us won't get you far," Rink replied and fired two of her regular sound bullets at Cagizo, who blocked them and started grinning.  
"You think that's _all_ I can do?" she said and looked over at Allen, who was still in the process of getting up after changing to half-beast form. She quickly turned her attention back to Rink, who had started half-running in the direction away from Allen. Cagizo took a few quick steps towards her, before throwing herself towards the ground and starting to roll at high speed towards Rink, like an armoured ball. Rink had to throw herself out of the way to avoid being hit, and, hearing the sound of Cagizo hitting the wall, was glad she hadn't been in the way. Cagizo got back up, turned around and launched a few water projectiles towards Rink - mostly for suppression rather than trying to actually hit her - before getting into another roll, this time towards Allen. He had gotten back on his feet, and managed to step out of the way without falling over. He ran towards Cagizo in an attempt to attack her before she could roll again, but got struck in the chest by one of her water shots and had to back away.  
"Well, _that_ certainly makes this a bit more complicated," Rink said. Cagizo simply kept up this pattern of attack, rolling towards them and following up by water projectiles to cover the moments she weren't rolling - and with the shielding on her back, arms and legs, any attacks they had would just bounce off of her. Rink and Allen kept dodging to the best of their ability, not taking any serious hits, but all Cagizo needed was one solid hit on either of them. The longer the fight lasted, the more the chance of her doing just that increased.  
"Any ideas?" Allen asked Rink as they passed each other, Allen having just gotten out of the way of another roll and Rink blocking a water projectile with her arm guard. Rink looked around the room, trying to see if there was anything that could help them - and something seemed to catch her eye.  
"I have one dumb plan," she replied in a hushed tone, trying to make sure that Cagizo couldn't hear them. "Can you lift her?"  
"Easily," Allen replied and put a hand on his half-beast bicep.  
"When I stop moving, stand behind me and stay still," Rink said. "And hope this works..."  
"Gotcha," Allen said as they separated. A couple more rolls from Cagizo later, Rink stopped partway through a run, standing perfectly still. Allen quickly joined her, the two of them looking over at Cagizo, currently on the other side of the room, next to the entrance.  
"Lining up for me? How nice of you!" she shouted and launched into another decisive roll.  
"How is this going to-" Allen started saying as he saw Rink take a deep breath, following which she let out a shout at the rapidly closing in Cagizo. A shout without much sound, but a lot of force behind it. It pushed against Cagizo, who slowed down, but still headed towards them.  
"Your turn!" Rink said and stepped to the side. Allen raised his arms, taking Cagizo's roll head-on - slowed down enough that it didn't do much damage. He grabbed on to her, and with all the force he could muster, threw her to the side - down the stairwell leading to the next prison level. In her rolling fury, she had failed to notice that Rink and Allen had placed themselves in the doorway leading to it. She tumbled down the stairs, hitting the steps and the wall several times, her shielding taking most of the hits but still taking quite a bit of damage. Allen looked down, seeing her land in a heap at the bottom after a final face first smack into the wall.  
"That was insane," he said to Rink.  
"At least it worked," Rink replied. "Right? She's out, right?"  
"She'll hurt for a bit but she'll live, I think... we should probably not stay and check."  
"Definitely not," Rink said and started running towards the stairs leading up to processing. Allen shifted into full hyena form and followed, shutting the doors after them as they heard Marines starting to pour in behind them.

* * *

"Watch out for his whips," Allen said as Carime lashed out in the direction of Rink and Markus. "The thorns are poisoned."  
"Only a little," Carime said with a laugh. "It's no fun if you die too fast!"  
"Where do the Marines even find these guys?" Rink asked. "Atlas on Kurita, now these two lunatics here..."  
"There's lots of crazies in the world," Allen replied. "Some just choose this path..."  
"We're quite grateful to Commander Roth for all he's done for us," Carime said and did a wide sweep towards Allen and Muse. Muse dropped to the ground to avoid it, whereas Allen just jumped out of the way. "The four of us, we had lost our mother..."  
"Yeah, I don't give even the slightest crap about your story," Rink said and fired off two sound bullets towards Carime. They only struck his jacket, and Carime replied with another whip swing in their direction. Markus swatted it away with one of his swords and started approaching, while Allen did the same from the other side. Carime pulled his whips in and swung one out to each side, waving them up and down while doing half a pirouette, effectively covering all of his sides. Markus and Allen halted their advances and just narrowly avoided getting hit, with Markus getting a gash in his coat from the thorns.  
"Aren't you going to do anything?" Allen asked Muse, that he was once again at the side of.  
"I don't have a clear shot!" she said and reached back to her quiver. Five... no, four and a half arrows left. The one she had used to shoot open Markus's cell had been damaged by the hit, so she didn't have too much faith in that one. Of the coatings, probably only enough left for one fire arrow, but she hadn't used any of the electric arrows today, so plenty of that. She figured that she might as well try, so she drew an arrow, in the same moment covering the thumb on her other hand in the conductive coating from a container at the other end of the quiver, slathering the gel over the arrow as she pulled back the bowstring. Carime had apparently noticed she was doing something, so he lashed out with a whip towards her. This fit Muse nicely - as she dodged, she could make it look like she misfired the arrow, sending it flying over Carime's head. Before any lightning happened, however, Carime flicked his arm and hit the arrow with his whip, causing it to spin away in another direction past the edge of the tower, harmlessly discharging in mid-air.  
"They told me there were some weird arrows involved," Carime said. "But that kind of tricks won't help you here."  
"Should've brought one of those rifles," Rink said and continued launching sound bullets with her tuning fork. "But he'd probably have some way of dealing with that too."  
"Can't you use your sound for something stronger?" Markus asked.  
"I _could_ ," Rink replied, "but without getting closer to him I'd have to put a lot of force in it, and I don't want to risk blowing one of us off the roof in the process."  
"Right..."  
"And all of us getting on the same side seems like it would be inviting bad things to happen. This guy covers the ground around him frighteningly well..."

Rink's words would prove to be quite true, as any attempt by either of them to close in on Carime was met by wide sweeps, double swings, spins and all kinds of moves that served the purpose of keeping the four of them at bay quite well. At the same time, Carime never let up his attacking, not leaving any openings to attack. Muse hadn't tried shooting any arrows beyond the first, for that very reason. And there weren't any escape routes, either - the Marines were blocking the way to the other tower, mostly just letting Carime do his thing, but even more worrying was the fire escape. It had given them an escape, but it meant that the Marines on the inside had a way up to them as well - a worry that proved true when it opened up, and a very angry, very blue individual with blood running down her face ascended.

" _Carime!_ " was the first word out of Cagizo's mouth as she witnessed the fight in front of her. "So _this_ is where you're hiding!"  
"Welcome, sis," Carime said.  
"You should have assisted me down there!"  
" _Someone_ had to cover the roof! See?"  
"If you had come to the prison like you were _supposed_ to, we could have taken care of them _before_ they could join up!"  
"That wouldn't have been as much fun!"  
"You _know_ I can't use all my moves in this kind of place!"  
"I don't see how that's _my_ problem."  
"You're going to be the death of us all one day," Cagizo said with the hint of a sigh. "Now stop fooling around and let's catch them already!"  
"Oh, well," Carime replied with a smirk. "Let's do it _your_ way, then."  
"Ah, siblings," Rink said as she got out of the way of an overhead swing from Carime. "But this isn't good..."  
"So that other one..." Markus said.  
"Solid shields, spits water and rolls around," Rink replied. "Pretty sure she was talking about that she can't roll up here, though." She dodged a barrage of water projectiles from Cagizo, and assessed their situation. Currently, they had Carime in the middle of the roof... Rink and Markus were still mostly joined up on one side of him, not far from the segment connecting the towers. Cagizo was on the other side, still at the fire escape, with Allen to her right and Muse to her left. She seemed mostly interested in Allen for now, but had no problems spitting past Carime, at Markus and Rink, as well. They had to finish this _fast_. At least the Marines that were mostly behind Markus and Rink didn't attack - in fact, they had even started retreating even further towards the other tower, apparently not wanting to risk getting caught in or hit by anything. Not that it made it any more of an escape route - there was only one way out of this, and it had just gotten harder.

For better or for worse, Carime and Cagizo didn't coordinate their attacks much - the fight mostly had split into Rink and Markus against Carime, and Allen and Muse against Cagizo. Allen made some attempts towards Carime when he had his back turned, but either Carime's whips or Cagizo's water barrages made sure he didn't get very far. Muse was still trying to get any opportunity at all to get a good arrow shot off, and Markus and Rink didn't have any more luck with their advances. Carime seemed to still enjoy toying with his prey, but Cagizo was getting increasingly frustrated, both at her brother's antics and at the fact that they weren't getting anywhere.

"C!" she yelled out. Carime glanced in her direction and gave a little nod, seemingly knowing what she meant without getting any more information. There wasn't any immediately obvious change in their attack pattern - Carime withdrew one of his whips, in the same manner he had done throughout the entire fight when preparing another swing, as Cagizo took a swig of the bottle she was holding and let three water projectiles fly towards Markus and Rink, changing her attention to Allen to fend off his next attempt at attack immediately afterwards. Markus and Rink started getting out of the way, keeping an eye on Carime assuming he would try to cut them off, and he did bring his whip out just as the water had passed by him - but he wasn't aiming for Markus and Rink.

The three water projectiles had been heading in the same direction, on Markus and Rink's position. They had started dodging in different directions, but following three near instantaneous whip-lashes from Carime, they each got hit - by a barrage of smaller water drops, still moving at high speed. It stopped both of them in their tracks, and it was only Rink's improved hearing that allowed her to avoid getting the whip that came heading her way an eye blink later wrapped around her neck. Carime was hitting Cagizo's water shots in the air, redirecting them, turning them into a spread... smaller, only slightly weaker, and covering a much wider area.

"Okay, I didn't expect that," Rink said as she turned her head towards Carime and Cagizo again. They had already sent another barrage at Allen and Muse, followed by another at Markus and Rink, the attack pattern being punctuated by additional whip swings from Carime.  
"What now?" Markus asked, swatting away Carime's whip with a sword before ducking under another water cascade.  
Rink looked around, as if she hadn't already concluded multiple times that there wasn't much that could help them here. She looked at Carime, at Allen, at Cagizo, at Muse, back to Carime... at Carime's whipping. It had changed slightly, now that he was using one of his whips to strike the water shots... "I do have one idea that I hope won't kill us," she said and looked at Markus. "Next cascade that comes our way, run to the side of him that I don't."  
"That doesn't sound ominous at all," Markus replied with a nod. They didn't have to wait long - Cagizo had already prepared her next shots, and the moment Rink heard her spit, she started dashing, past the segment connecting the towers, not quite getting out of range of the water cascade but avoiding most of it. Markus rushed the other way, blocking some water with his sword and powering through the rest. Carime followed up with the same type of sweeping swing he had been doing with his left whip, which was exactly what Rink had hoped for, and it was coming for her, which also what exactly what she had hoped for. Now she just hoped this next part would work too, lifting her left arm and putting it in the projected path of the whip.

It struck her arm guard and started wrapping around it. Carime started withdrawing it, but Rink grabbed on to it with her right hand, leaving Carime's whip - and left arm - stretched out.  
"Now!" Rink shouted. A moment later, Muse had let an arrow fly towards Carime, and this time he didn't manage to whip it away in time - it struck his outstretched arm, piercing through his elbow. He cried out in pain as Rink yanked on the whip she had stopped, making him drop it. Cagizo turned to her brother for a split second, giving Allen a much-needed opportunity - in full hyena form, he leaped at Cagizo, shifting to half-human the moment he hit her to maximise his weight, sending her tumbling to the ground, Allen holding on to her arms and weighing his knees down on her legs to keep her still. Markus was at this point charging at Carime, who had regained enough clarity to send a whip his way - a whip that was deflected by a pair of swords which that Markus dropped as he reached Carime, grabbing him and driving him towards the edge of the tower. He held on to the whip in his right hand, but didn't manage to do much with it until they reached the end, Markus sending him tumbling off the side with a final thrust. As he fell down, he used his remaining whip to snag on to a piece of rebar jutting out from the tower wall, leaving him hanging without anywhere to go.  
"Carime!" Cagizo shouted, struggling under the weight of Allen, managing to free her left arm and raise her head. "Get off me, you-"  
"Nope," Allen said before he introduced his right fist to Cagizo's face, knocking her out - again. "Told you I'd do it," he said before standing up and changing back into human form. He and Muse started walking over towards Rink and Markus when a large searchlight illuminated the uppermost side of the tower, including the four of them.

Down on the ground, in front of the gates of W4, a large group of Marines were gathered around the searchlight. From the middle of the crowd, a commanding voice sounded, "That's enough out of you!"


	32. The little ship that disappeared

_A note from the author: Another case of the chapter name being too long for the site. The full title of this chapter is 'The little ship that disappeared into the night'._

* * *

"Is that..." Rink was the first to speak up.  
"Roth," Allen said between gritted teeth.  
"And a lot of Marines," Muse said. "What do we do now?"  
"On that note..." Markus said and looked over towards the other tower. The Marines that had been waiting while the four of them did battle with Cagizo and Carime had now started to make their way over, though after having witnessed the fight, not with complete confidence.  
"I'll take care of them," Rink said and started walking towards the midsection. Markus noticed that she was wobbling a little, and that her right arm was hanging down - and bleeding. In her left hand, she was still holding the whip Carime had dropped.  
"Rink... are you-"  
"Stay back and make sure to stay _behind_ me," Rink interrupted. The other three did as she said, moving towards the middle of the tower as Rink took a deep breath and placed herself in front of the oncoming Marines. Seeing this, they hesitated, but there was no stopping now.  
"Is this really safe?" Allen asked.  
"Nothing we've done today has been safe," Muse replied as Rink let out a mighty bellow, hitting the Marines head-on. It did the job of stopping their advance, with the added bonus of disorienting them. Many were thrown backwards by the force of the sound, some stumbling over the edge of the roof.  
"I see why she didn't want to do something like that when we were spread out," Markus said. Despite being behind Rink's back, they still felt the force of her shout. He and Allen started running towards Rink, whereas Muse fired an arrow over their heads, an arrow that passed over the Marines and discharged its lightning bolt in the middle of their group. It was soon followed up by Allen, back to being a hyena, charging into them, taking several of them out of commission in short order. Markus had been following him, but stopped next to Rink, as he noticed she was breathing heavily - and now that he got a closer look at her, sweating profusely as well. Some degree of sweat could of course be expected from the fighting they had done, but this was excessive even accounting for that. More worrying was the steady trickle of blood coming from her right arm. "Hey... are you okay?"  
"I'm... fine," Rink replied.  
"You don't sound like it... or look like it."  
"I'm _fine_. I... kind of can't feel my right hand, but... I'm fine."  
"That's not what I would call fine."  
"I can... still fight," Rink replied. "I have to... we have to. We have to... get out..."  
"So what's the plan for that?" Markus asked as Muse came up next to them.  
"Um..." Rink said and looked at Muse. She didn't say anything.  
"You... have one, right?" Markus looked between the both of them, but they stayed silent. "Oh, god."  
"The plan was to punch our way out," Muse finally said. "But... I'm almost out of arrows..." she continued and fingered her remaining arrows. One and a half left, but it would have to do...  
"You're out of ammo, Rink's hurt..."  
"I can... do this," Rink said and took a step forwards.  
"Wait!" Markus said. Rink ignored him and kept walking towards the Marines, that were mostly busy with Allen. Markus followed after her. "How are you even going to fight with-"  
"Shut it," Rink said and lashed out with the whip she had borrowed towards an approaching Marine. Allen had noticed them, and struck the soldier in the back as he avoided Rink's clumsy swing.  
"And you're poisoned," Markus continued and started attacking the Marines that were coming towards them.  
"Eh, it's not lethal," Allen said, joining their conversation.  
"How do you know?" Markus asked.  
"There was that thing he said, and you saw what he was like, he wants to toy with his opponents," Allen replied as he put a gash in the leg of another soldier. "He wouldn't want to kill them with poison. Just slow them down, but keep them alive so he can drag it out. Killing them, I mean. He's kind of like that."  
"See, I told you... I'll be... fine..."  
"You're not fine now," Muse, who had joined them, said and put a hand on Rink's shoulder. "Let me have that... you can't use it in your state," she continued and grabbed Rink's left hand.  
"Can... you?" Rink asked.  
"Better than you right now."  
"Fine..." Rink said in a pained tone and let go of the whip, handing it over to Muse. She gripped it tightly in her right hand and placed herself in front of Rink, who had started getting down on one knee. She managed to keep some Marines at bay mostly by screaming at them, and directed the battle around her as best she could by letting the others know where she heard the most immediate dangers, but she was getting weaker by the moment. Muse might not have been as proficient with the whip as Carime, but drawing from experience with using ropes and hooks to climb things, didn't do too badly with it. It probably helped that the Marines knew it was Carime's whip, and thus didn't want to get poisoned.

The four of them managed to more or less take control of the midsection on top of the towers, with the searchlight on the ground keeping itself locked on their position and more Marines coming at them. Some had started coming from the fire escape of the prison tower as well, so they faced opposition from both sides. With Rink having to fight to even stay conscious, and with the rest of them starting to get fatigued as well, it certainly wasn't an ideal situation.  
"At this rate we're never going to reach the exit," Markus said.  
"I agree," Allen replied. "We need to get down from here."  
"Any ideas? It's kind of a long drop," Muse added.  
"The drop is probably our only way," Allen said. "If we stay up here, we're dead anyway..."  
"So... how?"  
"No chance for you to grab something with that whip?"  
"Not in freefall, no," Muse answered.  
"Hm..." Allen said and looked at his claws. "As long as we can slow ourselves down... the wall is slanted..."  
"And what about Rink?" Muse asked, looking at their companion, now down to two knees and one hand on the ground.  
"I'll handle her," Allen said and assumed half-hyena form, scooping Rink up in his right arm, almost hanging her over his shoulder.  
"What... are you..." she started saying.  
"No time," Allen said. "Ready?"  
"I doubt we have any choice," Markus said and put his swords back in their holders, instead picking up some shorter blades that had been dropped by some of their enemies. Muse did the same, but still held on to the whip.  
"I'll go first, just aim for me," Allen said and glanced behind him, over the wall facing the back of W4. "Here goes!" he exclaimed and put himself over the edge, using his feet and the claws on his left hand to slow his descent as much as possible while still making sure he wouldn't drop Rink. It didn't take long for him to slide all the way to the ground, and even though his feet and hand hurt a lot, he had no time for pause - the fall was taxing even on someone with a strengthened body like him, and Markus and Muse were already on their way down. They did what they could with the blades they were holding and their feet - at least they had shoes - to slow down, but Allen knew that wouldn't be enough. Markus was first, so Allen grabbed him when he was within reach, and quickly put him down to save Muse as well. He didn't have enough time to really steady himself, though, so the impact from Muse made him lose balance and fall backwards, ending up lying on the ground with Muse on top of his chest.  
"Sorry," Muse said before quickly getting off of him and started looking around. There weren't any conscious Marines around them right at this moment, but she didn't have to be Rink to hear several heading towards them, coming around the towers from both sides. Allen got to his feet and scooped up Rink, this time holding her behind his back.  
"Okay, hold on tight!" he said.  
"Wha..." Rink started before picking up on that Allen was changing to hyena form, carrying her on his back. Still not able to move her right hand, she held on to his neck fur as tightly as she could manage with her left.  
"Alright, so... gate's closed, the Marines are on their way, we need to get out," Allen said.  
"Any ideas?" Markus asked.  
"The gate's too solid for us to break down, at any rate," Allen replied. "So if we can't go through it..."  
"We'll have to go _over_ ," Muse said. With all the Marines in the way, trying to climb over the entry gate would be impossible, and climbing a plain concrete wall wasn't much of an option. The three of them turned around and looked at the backyard of W4. Mostly buildings that wouldn't be of much help, but beyond them...  
"The docks," Allen said. "That's how we're going to get up."  
"What?" Markus said. "How's that going to help?"  
"Just... follow me," Allen said and took off running on his four legs, Markus and Muse following behind. Allen weaved between the buildings, trying to stay out of sight of the Marines that were following them. Not that that would help much - they knew they were there, and they'd fan out to cover all the ground they _might_ be in. At least they would think they had the four of them trapped, and that would be an advantage, at least.

The dock of W4 was a large opening in the northeastern part of the walls, with several bridges extending outwards and sloping a bit downwards. Currently, two large Marine ships and a collection of smaller ones were docked here - but right now, at night, when no access to the ships was needed, the opening was covered by a large gate. But as the docks needed to be watched even with the gate closed, it consisted of thick iron bars laid out in a grid, leaving square holes all over it.  
"That's what," Allen said and nodded towards it. "We'll climb _that_."  
"Can you climb that while carrying Rink?" Markus asked.  
"As long as she holds on tight," Allen said and turned his head towards her. "You hear that?"  
"I'm... fine," Rink said and almost laid down on his back, holding her arm and legs around his stomach.  
"That'll do," Allen said and turned back to Markus and Muse. "We just have to deal with the guards!"  
"Got it," Muse said and pulled out her last intact arrow, coating her thumb with the conductive gel. "I'll get the ones on the left." Markus nodded at Muse before drawing his swords, and the three of them ran out at the same time, heading for the rightmost end of the dock gate.  
"Stop!" one of the guards positioned in front of it shouted. While most of W4's Marines had been directed to the front to deal with the intruders, some were still on guard duty - but not too many of them. Three Marines were coming at them from the left, one in front of them, and one to the right. Two of them drew rifles and started firing, but they didn't manage to do much in ways of stopping them before being attacked themselves - Markus cutting open the arm of the one coming from the right, Allen biting the leg of the one in front of them and Muse directing her arrow towards the trio on the left, the arrow discharging right in front of them. With the guards at least momentarily taken care of, the three of them dashed up to the part of the gate where it met the wall and started climbing. The gate was tall, but they had to climb fast - Marines were pouring in behind them, starting to fire in their direction. They managed to avoid getting hit, and soon had made it to the top of the gate, just slightly below the top of the outer wall.  
"Quick!" Allen shouted and took a leap from the gate to the wall. Markus and Muse followed in short order, and the three of them - Rink still holding on to Allen - started running on top of the wall. It was slanting outwards, but at least there wasn't any barbed wire or anything on top of it. So while it might not have been the most steady surface to run on, it wasn't going to get any better.

It didn't take long for the searchlight to find them again, and getting closer to their goal also meant getting closer to the Marines... and, for that matter, Roth. Allen didn't like the prospect much, but the chance for turning back had been lost the moment Rink had accepted his offer down in the prison. This still beat staying down there, in any case.  
" _Roland!_ " Roth's commanding voice rang out. "Stop right now!"  
"I'd love to stay and chat, but no time!" Allen replied and sped up. Roth, followed by a group of Marines, started moving towards the part of the wall in front of them, carrying rifles and ropes. "We've got incoming!"  
"You make sure Rink is safe, we'll deal with them!" Markus said and took a few long, quick but careful steps past Allen. He drew one of his swords and saw how some Marines were starting to throw ropes up at the wall to climb up and face them. The ones closest to him he could cut before anyone had the time to climb much, but some Marines farther ahead were already making it to the top of the wall. He pulled out his other sword, and they didn't prove to be too much of a threat - a few slashes were all it took to get them off balance, sending them back down the way they came.  
"Do I have to do everything myself?" Roth asked rhetorically, and started making his advance. Holding his mace in his right hand, he kept his eyes on Allen and seemed to be aiming towards him with his left arm.  
"Watch out!" Allen exclaimed, before hearing something fly through the air.  
"Got it," Muse said. Without a lot of other options, she had taken what she had left of her fire coating and put it on her damaged arrow, shooting it towards Roth. To her surprise, he didn't do anything to try to avoid it - in fact, he didn't even seem to pay any notice to the fact that an arrow had just struck him in the chest. It was when it started burning a moment later, catching his clothes on fire, that he lowered his arms and redirected his attention.  
"I can't believe that worked," Allen said and looked towards the gates of W4. They were close enough now, below them on the outside of the wall there was no longer a drop into the ocean, but the solid ground of Garlan. Markus and Allen jumped down almost simultaneously, with Muse following an instant later.  
"Open the gates!" came a familiar voice from inside. "Don't let them escape!"  
"Didn't I just set that guy on fire?" Muse asked.  
"That's nowhere near enough to stop Roth," Allen said. "He's a-" He was interrupted by the sound of rifles starting to fire behind them, the bullets flying over their heads.  
"Run, _run!_ " Markus shouted, emphasizing that there was no time to chat. They took off running away from W4, down towards the city of Coren. They didn't much want for the citizens to get involved, but they didn't have a lot of options, and if anyone, the Marines should be acting in the best interest of the civilians. In theory, anyway - Allen, with his experiences, would disagree with that notion. But hopefully it should give them some more room - and only having Marines on _one_ side was a marked improvement in any case. The chase was on, Markus leading the way and Muse bringing up the rear, Allen with Rink on his back in between them. The gunfire from the Marines did lessen as they got into the populated areas, but there weren't many people out - and a Marine chase in town was likely to make many decide to stay inside. Still, the buildings were good for cover, they could switch onto side streets, run between houses, use what they could to make the Marines lose them. When they reached the point where _Cassandra_ was docked, they had gained a bit of distance, but the Marine force wasn't far behind.

"Get ready to cast off!" Markus shouted to Mirise, standing on top of the cabin, as he approached the boat. It had been turned while they were gone, now being parallell to the island rather than having the bow pointing towards it, and it was no longer moored. James was sitting down in the boat, at the side closest to the island, holding an oar.  
"Right," Mirise replied and looked at the group approaching the boat. "James, you know what to do! Someone get the other oar!" she said and turned around.  
"Here goes!" Markus said as he jumped on board, shortly followed by Allen and Rink, and finally Muse. "We're all on!"  
"Who's the-" James started. "Ah, whatever, get the oar!" he continued and used the oar he was holding to push _Cassandra_ away from the island, turning the front out towards open waters.  
"I'll take it, someone take care of her," Allen said and crouched down to let Rink off, before changing back into human and grabbing another oar lying on the deck. Together, he and James started rowing the ship away from the island.  
"That's far enough, keep her steady!" Mirise half-shouted from atop the cabin.  
"You'd do well to sit down," James said to the others. "And... is Rink okay?"  
"Not right now," Markus said as they all sat down. "So... what's the idea?"  
"We're making a splash," James said with a little grin. And sure enough, only a moment laster, a splash was heard from the back of the boat, something causing a wave behind them, starting to carry them away from the island.  
"What was- Mirise?" Muse asked.  
"Mirise," James confirmed. "Now let's make sure we go _that_ way," he continued and pointed out over the bow. They all heard the commotion from the Marines behind them, but didn't think there was anything to worry about now, until...  
"Something... something's wrong!" Mirise shouted from the back of the ship. "They're... they're running towards us! They're running on the water!"  
"What?" Markus exclaimed. "Turn her a bit!"  
"I was afraid of this," Allen said and put his oar in the water, turning _Cassandra_ so that they had a view of what was going on behind them. And there it was - with Roth up front, a group of Marines were running after _Cassandra_ , seemingly on top of the water.  
"They're running on the surface? That's- that's impossible!" Markus exclaimed.  
"No," Allen said. "They're not running on the _water_... it's dark, but look closer..."  
"Wait..." Muse said as the Marines approached. Under their feet, something was extending towards them, something transparent... "Is that... glass? They're on a bridge of glass?"  
"That's what I've been trying to tell you," Allen said. "It's Roth! He's a devil fruit user... he's got the power of the _Glass Fruit_!"  
"Glass... then we need..." Muse said and looked at Rink. "Rink! Are you still alive? We need your help..."  
"I heard... I can... just... point me... the right way..." Rink answered between heavy breaths, clearly in pain. Markus and Muse picked her up, one on each side, helping her to sit up and face the oncoming Marines. With some difficulty, she took a deep breath before opening her mouth, letting out a shrill scream in the direction of the oncoming Marines. Some of them stopped, but they didn't have the time to do much of anything as their footing started cracking, soon shattering under Rink's cry. The crew of _Cassandra_ didn't wait to witness the results, but they spotted several Marine soldiers starting to dive after their commander before continuing away from the island.  
"Great job, Rink," Markus said. He didn't get much of a reply - Rink slumped down, breathing heavily, the scream having taken all the energy she had left and leaving her unconscious.  
"Rink!" Muse shouted. "Rink, wake up!"  
"Let's get her into the cabin," Markus said. "Poison isn't my main area, but..."  
"Right," Muse said and helped Markus lift Rink into _Cassandra's_ cabin. James and Allen kept rowing, and soon Mirise climbed up into the ship from the side, having swam to the front.  
"We did it!" she said with a smile and looked at James, then at Allen. "Oh... who... are you, sir?"  
"The name is Allen Roland, your friend helped me out," Allen said and stood up.  
"Nice to-" Mirise started, before gasping and covering her mouth with her hands.  
"What?" Allen asked in response.  
"Dude," James said and pointed at Allen's legs.  
"Hm?" Allen replied and looked down, remembering his current state of dress before sitting down again. "...oh, right. So, uh... you got any pants I can borrow?"


	33. Status report

"No, seriously, run that by me again. You're a wanted criminal, you were in a maximum security prison, and your bounty is _how_ much?"  
"Forty-three million."  
"Forty-three mil- so, just tell me..."  
"What?"  
" _Why the hell are you on my ship?_ " James turned to Muse in exasperation. "Muse. Explain."  
"That was all Rink," Muse replied.  
"Your friends helped me, so I helped them," Allen said.  
"We wouldn't have gotten Markus out without him," Muse said. "Not the way things went."  
"I'm starting to have second thoughts about this entire trip," James said as the cabin door opened and Mirise walked in.  
"Well, it doesn't seem like anybody's following us," she said. "I'll see if I can plot a course in the morning."  
"Sorry about before, miss," Allen said. They didn't have any clothes that fit him, so for the time being he had been given an empty sack and fashioned the world's shoddiest underpants to at least cover _that_ part. "There wasn't much time to think about clothes while we were escaping."  
"It's... it's alright," Mirise replied with just a hint of embarrassment remaining in her voice. She turned to Markus, who was sitting next to the mattress that they had laid Rink on, next to the wall of the far corner of the cabin. She had been quite warm and sweaty, so Markus and Muse had gotten her out of most of the clothes she had been wearing, leaving her only in her panties and one of Muse's sleeping t-shirts before pulling a blanket over her. It looked like she was sleeping, but her breathing was irregular. "Is... is _she_ alright?"  
"She got hit with some poison, but..." Markus replied. "We'll keep an eye on her, but right now I think she needs rest more than anything. I believe Allen was right, it's not lethal poison, but running around and fighting like we did probably didn't help. She's passed out, but I don't think there's any imminent danger."  
"I'm quite tired myself," Allen agreed and yawned.  
"I think we all need rest after tonight," Markus said.  
"Alright... but don't think I'm done with you," James told Allen. "We'll continue tomorrow."  
"Gladly," Allen replied with a grin. Muse walked over to her corner with her own blanket, while Mirise rolled out the other mattress next to Rink's. "So, where do I sleep?" he asked Markus.  
"Well, we're... kind of out of beds..." Markus replied. "James definitely needs a mattress with that leg of his, we're not moving Rink, and I don't think you'd fit in the hammock."  
"Hah! I just spent four months in a prison, and you think not getting to sleep in a bed is going to bother me?" Allen asked with a laugh. "I didn't even get to lie down to sleep in that cell! Hell, four walls and a ceiling over my head is more than I've had at times. I'll make do with the floor."  
"Not sure we have any more blankets, either..."  
"I have my own," Allen said and changed into a hyena. "Literally."  
"Oh, well... that's convenient," Markus said. "Could you help me get James into bed?"  
"What happened to your leg, anyway?" Allen asked and assumed half-beast form.  
"Got stepped on by this huge guy on Kurita," James replied.  
"He's got a fracture, it's not too bad but he can't put any weight on that leg," Markus said.  
"Kurita. Is that where you killed that mayor?"  
"They told you, huh," Markus replied. "Yeah. He was kind of... bad for the island."  
"I know the type," Allen said and walked up to James. "So, on the mattress, right?"  
"Yeah, let me help-"  
"No need," Allen said and easily lifted James down into his bed, being, James noted, surprisingly gentle about it. Maybe he just _looked_ like a brute.  
"Oh," Markus said and started taking off his shoes and pants. Allen turned back into his hyena form, discarded his single piece of clothing and curled up in the middle of the cabin. With how exhausted the majority of them were after the adventure on Garlan, it wasn't long before the only sounds coming from _Cassandra_ were the water gently splashing against its hull, and the occasional snore from within.

* * *

For once, Rink was the last one to wake up. She had been out cold for the better part of ten hours before she started hearing sounds around her again, sounds that snapped her back to reality as she remembered their escape from Garlan.

"Bwuh," was the first sound she made after opening her eyes. "Wuzzat... weh... huh?"  
"Rink!" Mirise exclaimed. "Thank goodness you're awake."  
"You slept through breakfast," James added.  
"Urgh... what... happened?" Rink asked and raised her head to look up at the rest of them, sitting around _Cassandra's_ table. "We... got away?"  
"Yeah, they don't seem to have tried to follow us, strangely enough..." Markus replied.  
"I wouldn't feel safe yet," Allen said. Since Rink last saw him, he had shaved off the beard that four months of prison had resulted in, and while his hair was still quite unkempt, it had clearly been washed and trimmed since yesterday, still reaching his shoulders but not much more. On his upper body, he was wearing one of the Marine shirts Muse and Rink had used yesterday, with the sleeves cut off to make it more of a vest, though he was too large to close it. James had begrudgingly donated a pair of pants to him, pants that had been converted into shorts and had the waistband removed. Allen was not too much taller than James, but with a bulkier frame mostly consisting of muscle - though four months of prison food and lack of exercise had taken its toll. "Roth's definitely planning something. He's like that."  
"How are you?" Markus asked Rink.  
"Let's see..." she said and held her left hand to her forehead. "I'm... alive, at least? I have a headache the size of a sea king and it feels like there's a lump of seastone in my arm."  
"You're going to need to take it easy, but the poison shouldn't be in your system for much longer," Markus continued. "Do you want anything? Food, water?"  
"I want..." Rink said, before sinking into what appeared to be deep thought for a second or two before declaring, "I want a coffee and a smoke."  
"I think there's some coffee left from the breakfast, I'll heat it up for you," Mirise said and walked over to the kitchen corner.  
"You are an absolute sweetheart," Rink said with a smile before closing her eye and lowering her head to her pillow again, face-first. "Ow."  
"You okay?"  
"Yeah, yeah, just my head," Rink said into the pillow. "That must have been the, like, third wildest night I've ever had."  
"What were you even doing before we met?" James asked.  
"I've been around," Rink replied before rolling her head as to no longer speak to her pillow. "You already knew I was on a ship before."  
"Yeah, but... have all journeys you've been on become stuff like this?"  
"I've really only been on one before," Rink said. "Ow."  
"Was that one like this one?"  
"It was... different," Rink replied. "Bigger ship. More people. More of everything, really... more..."  
"More what?" James asked.  
"More good stuff and more bad stuff. We haven't been on this one for that long, though. Ow."  
"We've already made ourselves complicit in murder, and now... this."  
"It's the world we live in," Rink stated.  
"You always have to be ready to stand up for yourself," Allen added. "Because if you don't, nobody else will."  
"Isn't that what the Marines are for?" Markus asked. "Well... technically."  
"The Marines are the ones you should trust the least," Allen replied with a snarl. "They really don't care."  
"That seems a bit harsh," Rink said. "Not that there's any love lost between me and them, but..."  
"You won't find any more corrupt organization anywhere," Allen said. "They've figured out that it's easier to be selfish if you have the support of the public."  
"I'll take your word for that for now," Rink said and looked up. "For now, I have more important matters to attend."  
"What?" Allen asked as Mirise returned with a hot cup of coffee. "Oh."  
"Here you go," Mirise said and handed the cup towards Rink, who sat up on her mattress with her back against the wall before taking it.  
"Thanks." The contents were too hot to drink at the moment, so Rink took the time to look down, noticing what she was wearing, something she hadn't paid much attention to before now. "Oh, huh... this your shirt, Muse?"  
"You were sweating a lot, so we wanted to get you into something light," Markus responded.  
"That makes sense," Rink said and started blowing at her beverage. She drank it without saying much more, finishing it in a couple large gulps, before standing up and putting the cup on the table. She got one of her skirts out of her bag and put it on, at the same time taking out her pipe box. "Alright, time for a smoke."  
"You have cigarettes? Mind if I bum one?" Allen asked.  
"Just loose tobacco," Rink replied and put her pipe in her mouth. "Shredded."  
"I can roll one with that. What kind?"  
"Courtesan's Hair," Rink answered and held up a pack of the tobacco.  
"That weak stuff? Not even Seven Treasures, if you use shredded?"  
"I don't like Seven Treasures," Rink said. "I use it in a blend... I usually use Style but they were out of that, and any I had left I've already used for mixing."  
"Oh, well," Allen said with a shrug. "I haven't had a smoke since I got thrown in there, so could I..."  
"Help yourself," Rink said and tossed the opened pack of Courtesan's Hair in front of Allen.  
"Anyone have any paper?" Allen asked as he picked it up.  
"We... have a newspaper, I guess?" James said and pointed towards the hammock, underneath which the newspaper they had acquired the day before lay.  
"Not ideal, but... you take what you can get," Allen said and picked it up. He tore off some strips of the paper, flattening them into a stack on the table, then put some tobacco in the middle and rolled it up as best as he could. He held it up in front of his face, looking at what he had just produced.  
"So?" Rink asked.  
"This is, without a doubt, the saddest cigarette I have ever rolled," Allen said with a chuckle. "Got a light?"  
"Not in here, you don't," James said.  
"What?" Allen asked in response.  
"The rule is no smoking inside the cabin," Rink replied while pointing at the cabin door with her thumb. "So..."  
"Fine with me," Allen said and followed Rink outside.

It was a bright day, with the sun still climbing in the sky. Rink sat down in the front of the deck, looking out over the bow, and lit her pipe. Allen sat down to her left with his newly rolled cigarette in hand, and held it out for Rink to light (before throwing the match into the sea). Kind of predictably, Allen's cigarette didn't quite burn as regularly as a normal one would. He got a few puffs in before most of it was gone, and flicked the burning butt into the water before the fire reached his fingers.  
"Well, at least that was something," he said with a grin. "Going to need to get some real cigarettes, though... or something better to roll with."  
"Cigarettes, huh..." Rink said as she kept puffing on her pipe.  
"Didn't you ever smoke cigs?" Allen asked.  
"No... only this," Rink replied and held up her pipe to look at it. "Was one of my old... friends that introduced me, after I lost my eye. Was to help me relax."  
"So what's in that, anyway?" Allen asked as he took a few whiffs of the smoke. "You said you mix it?"  
"It's half tobacco, half... well, herbs. A blend. You know, dried leaves and petals and stuff... some rose..."  
"Do I smell... lavender?"  
"And a pinch of that for taste. Want to try?" Rink asked, holding the pipe in Allen's direction.  
"Eh... sure," he replied, accepted the pipe and put it in his mouth for a puff. He took it out, exhaled a small cloud of smoke and handed the pipe back with a look of doubt on his face. "I think I'll stick to cigarettes."  
"You do that," Rink said and resumed her smoking. "So what do you think of the gang?"  
"They seem... alright," Allen replied. "Is this really blondie's ship? He doesn't seem the captain type."  
"We haven't really got a captain, and he didn't really expect anything like this to happen," Rink replied. "It's definitely his boat, though. He built it."  
"He built it, even? That's actually kind of impressive."  
"There's more to James than you'd think," Rink said. "Still inexperienced, though."  
"I gathered."  
"But he's driven, y'know? He wants to learn. That's the entire reason he set out on his trip in the first place, to become less inexperienced. I respect that. It was a big reason I even came with him."  
"So what did he learn by breaking his leg?"  
"That helping people isn't always painless."  
"True that," Allen replied. "So, well... we did come to an agreement, at least..."  
"Let me guess. He begrudgingly allowed you to stay on the ship until we get to some island where you'll be fine on your own, because now that you're here it would feel wrong to just throw you off."  
"That's pretty much it exactly."  
"I really need to teach him to be less predictable," Rink said and stood up. "Okay, I should probably eat something... and speaking of which..." she continued and looked at the storage hatch.  
"What?"  
"Gotta check something. You head back in."  
"Well, sure," Allen said and went back in the cabin as Rink opened the storage hatch and lowered herself through it.

She rejoined the others in the cabin a few minutes later. Most of them were sitting around the table, but Muse was sitting in the corner where she had been sleeping with some jars and bowls in front of her. As Rink came in, she stood up and walked up to her.  
"Rink, um..." Muse started.  
"Yes?"  
"I just... I wanted to say... I'm glad you're fine. And..."  
"And?"  
"And... thank you. Thank you for helping me get Markus out... you got hurt, and poisoned, just to help me..."  
"Don't worry about it," Rink said with an exaggerated smile and sarcastic hand wave. "You know I'll do anything for my dear little sister."  
"Whatever you say, Sonya," Muse replied with a giggle and a playful fist bump on Rink's shoulder.  
"You know, that's the first time I've seen you smile," Rink said. "You should smile more. You're pretty when you do."  
"I don't have many reasons to smile," Muse replied.  
"You keep telling yourself that," Rink retorted. "Anyway, come with me for a moment... I want your opinion on something."  
"Me? Why?"  
"I would ask James, but he's not mobile enough," Rink said.  
"I can hear you," James said from the back of the cabin.  
"Sure, whatever," Rink said and pointed with her thumb at the door. "C'mon."  
"Um... okay," Muse replied and followed Rink outside. James watched the door close and then turned to Markus.  
"Who's Sonya and since when are they sisters?" he asked.  
"I have no idea what's going on anymore," Markus replied. "But... it's great."  
"What is?"  
"She's smiling, she's joking... she's even laughing," Markus said and smiled. "I've never heard her laugh before. Almost makes it worth being thrown in jail."  
James cast an incredulous glance at Markus, but elected to not say anything and instead just shook his head. Nobody started up the conversation again, so the cabin stayed silent until Rink and Muse returned after a short while. Markus looked at them as they approached the table.  
"You two seem to be getting along well."  
"Oh, you know, there's nothing quite like risking your lives by doing something incredibly stupid to bring people together," Rink said with a grin. "So, anyway... we've inspected the storage, and I hope you like rice."  
"Why?"  
"Because that's more or less what we _have_ ," Rink replied. "We didn't exactly have time to stock up on Garlan."  
"Don't we have anything left from what we got on Kurita?" James asked.  
"A bit," Rink said. "But that was calculated for three people, not five, definitely not six, and since we don't have a cold storage, anything not dry, or salted, or dry and salted is going to spoil."  
"So..."  
"So, on a quick check, apart from what we keep in the kitchen, we have reasonable amounts of rice, salt, and sugar. A bit of flour. Scraps of some other stuff that would maybe make one meal if put together."  
"I don't mind rice," Markus said.  
"But with six people, even if we limit ourselves to only two meals a day, we're going to run out of that too," Rink said. "Better get to fishing... but we're really going to have to land somewhere to stock up. Soon."  
"I feel like we should maybe avoid populated islands for a bit," James said.  
"I agree," Rink replied, "but I don't know if we can. We didn't only look at what actually was _in_ the storage. Muse."  
"That escape wasn't as painless as we might have thought," Muse said. "Rink's poisoning aside, we got out mostly unharmed... but that's more than I can say about _Cassandra_."  
"What? What's wrong with her?" James asked, clearly worried.  
"You if anyone should know she wasn't built for that... I don't know what it was that did it, but the escape, Rink's scream... all the stress on her... she's damaged," Muse said. "There's noticeable cracks even on the inside. There's no leaks _yet_ , but..."  
"So... what do we..." Markus said.  
"We do what we can for now," Muse said. "I'm no carpenter, but I know how to build stuff," she said and glanced at her bow.  
"I built her, I should be doing it," James said.  
"You're not doing anything while your leg is still like that," Muse replied. "Just hope she holds together until we can give her some real repairs, but I don't think we have the materials and tools for that right now, and we can't do it while she's in the water anyway. We'll patch her up as we go until then."  
"Ugh... fine," James said and put a hand over his mouth. "Sis..."  
"What?"  
"Nothing."  
"So that's our situation," Rink said. "Not an ideal one to be in, but we're not in immediate danger, so that's something, at least."  
"That we know of," Allen added.  
"Well, yes," Rink said. "But we can at least _try_ to stay positive about it. That includes you, Muse."  
Muse chose to not reply, instead returning to her corner. Rink stepped over to the kitchen to get herself some late breakfast, and the rest of _Cassandra's_ inhabitants stayed around the table. Mirise looked over the map she had rolled out on the table, trying to figure out their course. She knew where they were - but with the latest revelations, had even less of an idea where they were going to go...


	34. What the map didn't show

Muse climbed back out of the storage hold, holding a hammer in her hand and some nails in her mouth. "Another tiny leak fixed... that's the fifth in three days," she said and shook her head. "It's not going to get any better and the weather isn't helping."  
"That's just great," James replied. He was leaning against the cabin wall, using Galt's cane for support.

The rain had started the prior evening and continued into the current early afternoon. It wasn't a heavy torrent, just a steady trickle being more of an annoyance than anything else. More pressing was the near-complete lack of wind that had come with it, something that had naturally slowed down their journey considerably.

"See anything?" Muse asked Mirise, who was sitting on top of _Cassandra's_ cabin, with a sextant in her hand and a map in her lap.  
"I'm pretty sure I know where we are, but I'm more concerned with where we're going to go," she replied. "We _have_ a route, but we're not _on_ it."  
"Meaning?"  
"Meaning the situation hasn't improved any since yesterday," Mirise said and jumped down to the deck. "And it would be easier if I could actually see the sun or the stars."  
"Anything close by?" James asked.  
"Not really, unless we want to go back to Garlan," Mirise replied.  
"That sounds like the worst possible idea."  
"Exactly. So... here we are." Mirise turned around and entered the cabin, followed by the other two, Muse helping James down.  
" _Please_ tell me at least _one_ of you has good news," Rink said as the door closed. She, Markus and Allen were sitting around the table, not doing much.  
"I'm afraid that we've only got disappointment," Mirise replied.  
"More leaks and no wind," Muse added before sitting down in her corner with some bowls and jars in front of her.  
"Uuuugh," Rink groaned and laid her head and arms down over the table.  
"It's as miss Muse said," Mirise commented and sat down across from her, next to Allen. "We're not getting anywhere."  
"Lemme see that map," Allen said and pointed at Mirise.  
"Hm? Oh, sure," Mirise answered and rolled it out on the table.  
"So what's the deal?" Allen asked.  
"Well, Garlan's right here," Mirise said and pointed to an island on the map, and then traced a path away from it with her finger, leading north. "I'm pretty sure we're here right now. We reached Garlan from the east, coming from Kurita..."  
"So why don't we take that route instead?" Allen asked and traced another path, this one leading to the west of Garlan, intersecting a green line on the map. "We'd be on track to reach land in four days."  
"At this point I'm not sure we _have_ four days, plus we probably don't want to cross the New Green," Mirise replied.  
"Oh, hm, you're right," Allen agreed.  
"Green what? And you can navigate?" James asked Allen.  
"I was traveling on my own for the better part of fifteen years, dude," Allen replied. "I couldn't _always_ hitch rides with other people."  
"The New Green trade route," Mirise said in reply to James's first question. "This is a map of West Blue trade routes, and I've been trying to avoid them since the common routes are where there's the most activity, both Marine and pirate. The Green Route, as it was called, was redrawn a lot because of Avasine... it used to go more directly between Garlan and Kurita, but it branched off to Avasine when that grew, and eventually skipped Kurita entirely. It's no exaggeration to say that Avasine literally redrew West Blue's trade routes... right now, except for local ones that only involve a few islands, the only major West Blue trading routes that don't go through Avasine at all are the Great Western Ring, which goes around the outer edges of West Blue, and the Express Lane, which goes through the middle but only concerns itself with three islands."  
"So..."  
"The most attractive targets for pirates are trade ships with lots of cargo, so they concentrate on the trade routes... and in turn, naturally, the Marines focus their efforts there too," Allen explained. "It's not that hard to figure out."  
"That explains why we haven't seen a lot of other ships around," James said.  
"It's not that common anyway," Allen said. "The ocean is big, and most people don't travel. Especially not these days."  
"In either case... we're not completely dead in the water, but we're not really getting anywhere either," Mirise concluded.  
"If it wasn't for the food situation..." Markus said.  
"Miiiiriiiise..." Rink said in a defeated tone from the other side of the table.  
"Yes?"  
"Make me a cup of teeeea..."  
"What do we say?" Mirise replied with a smile.  
Rink raised her head to look at Mirise. "Pleeeease?"  
"Alright, I'll make your tea," Mirise said and walked over to the kitchen. "What kind do you want?"  
"You know I don't care."  
"Yes, yes. Anyone else want a cup? James?"  
"I'm fine, thanks," James replied. The rest just shook their heads, except for Markus.  
"Something warm would be nice, so I'll take one," he said.  
"And I'll have one myself, so that's three," Mirise stated and started making their tea. Allen kept studying the map, but nobody said much. Soon three steaming cups were delivered to the table, and their recipients drank them in silence.  
"Aaah," Rink let out as she put her empty cup down.  
"Good?" Allen asked.  
"Ask someone else," Rink replied.  
"What?"  
"I don't like tea so I have no idea."  
"You sounded like you really wanted it."  
"I wanted to drink it, but... it's complicated, okay?"  
"Well, fine."  
"Yep," Rink said and leaned backwards, making her head hang so she faced the ceiling. "Bleh."  
"What's the matter with you anyway?" Allen asked.  
"I am fantastically _bored_ ," Rink said.  
"It's not like our previous journeys between islands have been a lot more exciting," James commented.  
"Eh, it's the weather," Rink explained and straightened herself back up. "Boring weather always does this to me. I remember a show I played after it had rained for a week straight... that was the weirdest show I ever played."  
"Oh, I remember that week," Mirise giggled. "But speaking of shows... why don't you sing something? It might lift our spirits."  
"Sing..." Rink repeated.  
"Yeah," James said. "Yeah, why don't you? You sang at the start of our trip, but I think I haven't heard you do more than hum since we reached Kurita."  
"You know... you know, you're right!" Rink's face lit up at the idea. "I got so used to singing at the hotel, with the piano accompanying me... I didn't do any other singing in Avasine, and with all that's been going on I haven't thought much about... well, just singing for the sake of singing."  
"The girl with the Sound Fruit is a singer, too? This should be good," Allen said.  
"Hmm... a song about rain..." Rink said, mostly to herself, and listened to the rain hitting the ship for a few moments before she started tapping a rhythm with her fingers on the table. She closed her eye as she started singing...

 _A raindrop in the sea, that is me, what I'll be_  
 _when I join in with them all, and I fall, is my call_  
 _I don't know where I'll go, but it's true, what I'll do_  
 _is to find my place out there, that I'll share, everywhere_

 _A raindrop in the sky, I will try, I will fly_  
 _to the world where I belong, with my song, I'll be strong_  
 _I'll land so far away, on my way, I can't stay_  
 _when I'm searching for my light, out of sight, shining bright_

 _A raindrop on the ground, that I found, with the sound_  
 _of a single dripping tear, falling near, when I'm here_  
 _I've seen my peace of mind, staying blind, as I find_  
 _that I'm nothing but the rain, but I gain, it's the same..._

Rink trailed off into silence and opened her eye again, smiling as the others gave her a short applause.  
"That was... short," Allen said. "But good."  
"It was," Mirise agreed. "I didn't really understand it, but... it wasn't really about rain, was it?"  
"Whaddaya want, I made most of it up while I was singing," Rink replied. "Wasn't really anything to understand."  
"Made it up _while_ you were singing? Creative," Markus commented.  
"I try to be. So, now what? You want more?"  
"Hold on..." Mirise started. "Maybe that song did bring us good luck."  
"What do you mean?"  
"Listen."  
"You're right... the rain has slowed down, and... wind. We've actually got wind."  
"We need to hoist the sail!" Mirise exclaimed and stood up. Everybody, except for James and Muse, left the cabin. The rain wasn't completely gone but was showing signs of passing, and enough wind to carry the boat (even if slowly) had picked up. In front of them, however, was another spot of weather that they hadn't particularly asked for.  
"Mist," Rink commented. "Lovely."  
"It doesn't matter," Mirise replied while she directed Allen and Markus to get the sail up. Rink walked to the front of the ship and looked ahead, squinting a bit.  
"Isn't that..." she said.  
"What?" Mirise asked.  
"Hold on," Rink said and went back into the cabin, seconds later returning outside - now holding James's spyglass. She looked out over the bow through it, holding still until _Cassandra_ started moving. "Mirise."  
"Yes? You see something?"  
"Call me crazy, but... there's an island up ahead."  
"What? There's not supposed to be any islands around here..."  
"Take a look yourself," Rink said and handed Mirise the spyglass. She started peering at the fog in front of them, lowering and raising the spyglass a few times before heading into the cabin, returning outside with her map, started looking out over the bow again, consulted her map, looked through the spyglass and finally down at the map before turning to the others.  
"There's no island on the map..."  
"But?" Rink asked.  
"But I think you're right, there really is an island over there," Mirise said, slightly defeated.  
"It's not that weird," Allen said. "If it's not an inhabited island, there's no reason for it to be on a trade map..."  
"There's no island here on any of my maps I've checked," Mirise said. "And the trade one has uninhabited ones, too."  
"Either way, an island is an island and we need one right now," Allen stated. "Are we on track for it?"  
"Yes, it should be fine," Mirise replied, still looking at her map as _Cassandra_ kept piercing the mist.

It wasn't long until the mystery island became visible even without the spyglass. It was of decent size, the majority of it seemingly consisting of trees, with no signs of any kind of settlements. The shoreline consisted mostly of gravel, so they approached with care - while they wanted to get _Cassandra_ out of the water, they didn't want to risk running her aground with such force that it damaged the hull even more. When they were close enough, Mirise, Muse and Markus waded ashore, using ropes to pull the ship in while Allen and Rink used oars to gauge the depth they were in. Slowly but surely the vessel scraped up onto the island, and eventually the front half of the boat was completely out of the water. Muse tied the end of her rope around the closest tree, just to make sure it wouldn't be easily carried back out into the sea. Rink, Allen and James (being mostly carried by Allen) disembarked as well after handing equipment and weapons to the others, and while the majority of them looked towards the thick forest they had approached, James kept his eyes on his ship.

"Okay, now we can fix her up..." he said, leaning on the cane.  
"Well, the ship should be good here for a bit... the food situation is really more pressing," Rink said. "Let's explore and see what we can find."  
"But..."  
"She'll be fine, James."  
"Should I really be hiking through a forest like this?" he said, pointing at his leg cast.  
"Well, maybe..." Markus started.  
"Oh, just let me handle it," Allen said and changed into a hyena before walking up next to James. "C'mon," he said and gave a nod towards his own back.  
"You mean... wait, you're saying I should ride on you? That's..."  
"I can handle it, dude," Allen replied. "I've lifted you in and out of your bed like six times already. You can't weigh more than, what, eighty? Eighty-five?"  
"Where did I go wrong..." James whispered to himself as he got on Allen's back. It wasn't the most comfortable of rides, as he had to pull up his legs to not have his feet scrape on the ground, but with the fractured leg of his, was at least better than walking. He still held the cane in one hand, and held on to Allen with the other.  
"So... you hear anything?" Muse asked Rink, the two of them looking towards the forest.  
"I hear a lot of things," Rink answered. "Hard to distinguish all of it, but there's definitely a bunch of things alive here... and that means..."  
"If there's animals, there's food," Allen said as he walked between them with James on his back. "In more than one sense," he added with a smirk.  
"It's been a while since I did any real hunting for food, but it should be no issue," Muse said with a nod and unfolded her bow. "Everybody ready?"  
"You and Rink should probably be in front," Markus told the two of them.  
"Agreed," Allen said. "Let's go." They started walking towards the forest, except for Mirise who stopped and kept looking towards the treetops.  
"Are you okay?" Markus asked.  
"Yeah, I just... I've never been in a forest before, I've never seen a real one..."  
"Oh yeah, it's not like Avasine had any trees..." Rink commented. "You'll be fine."  
"Oh, I wasn't really worried," Mirise replied. "Just wanted to... take it all in."  
"Alright, come on," Muse said and proceeded into the forest, with Rink after her. Allen with James on his back followed them, with Markus and Mirise right behind. This forest should hold the solution to _one_ of their problems, at the very least.


	35. Mysteries of a forest

The forest was thick, but by no means impossible to get through. Especially not with Muse leading them, as she was obviously used to traversing this kind of terrain. Rink was following and listening for anything out of the ordinary, while Mirise was drawing a rudimentary map of the island as they went along. Markus was walking next to Allen, assisting in keeping James steady.

"So what are we looking for, exactly?" Rink asked Muse.  
"For the time being, I just want to get deeper inside the forest," she replied. "I want to find a place to start from, so to speak... I haven't seen any real tracks so far. Finding an animal trail, or a water hole would be helpful..."  
"I haven't heard much around us either, just some small stuff..."  
"How do we even know there's anything else here?" James asked. "What if it's only small animals?"  
"Even then, as long as something lives here, which we've confirmed, they have to live off of _something_ ," Muse explained. "There's something to eat in this forest. We can be sure of that."  
"Mushrooms, berries, roots, finding anything at all'll be better than running on the same sack of rice," Allen added.  
"Oh, come on, if _you_ hadn't come along-"  
"-we would at most have gotten another day or so out of it," Rink said, interrupting James. "We would have had to do this, Allen or no Allen. So we might as well make the best of the situation."  
"Right, right..."

James elected not to say anything else as they continued, and while they didn't seem to get much closer to anything, after a short while, Rink stopped walking, almost in the middle of a step. Mirise almost bumped into her, and Muse stopped and turned around after noticing the rest of them had stopped as well.

"Rink?" Muse looked at her.  
"Hold on... everybody quiet for a moment..." Rink closed her eye and started turning her head slowly. After a few moments, she stopped and started looking again. "There. I'm sure of it now."  
"What?"  
"In that direction," Rink said and pointed into the forest, a bit to the right of the path they were currently on. "I've been trying to figure it out for a while... there's a lot of things in the way, and there's a lot of sounds here, but there _something_ there that's distinctly different from all the other sounds I've been picking up."  
"What is it?" James asked.  
"I have absolutely no idea," Rink replied with a shrug. "I've never heard anything like that before. Except..."  
"What?"  
"There's... one part about it, that reminds me of... but no, can't be."  
"Just tell us, if nothing else so we could prepare for any nasty surprises," Allen said.  
"I don't know about nasty, and I don't know how it's possible... but there's a certain thing about it that reminds me of _Mirise_."  
"Me?" Mirise exclaimed in surprise.  
"Just a really small part of it, but... it's one I've not heard in anything else. I don't know what that means."  
"What are the chances we'd find someone like Mirise _here_?" James asked.  
"It's not someone like Mirise," Rink stated. "Most of... whatever it is... doesn't sound like that, and most of Mirise sounds different too. But..."  
"We should check it out, at least," Muse said. "You think it's something non-native?"  
"Almost certainly," Rink replied with a nod. "It's something that's alive, and it's not like anything else I've heard here. But I don't know what it could be."  
"I'd rather find it before it finds us," Allen commented.  
"Well... it's not moving, as far as I can tell. It hasn't moved since I first thought I heard it..."  
"Maybe it's sleeping?" Mirise offered.  
"Seems likely."

They agreed that since they had no other clues as to where to find anything useful anyway, they might as well check out what it was that Rink had picked up on. Mirise was especially curious. With Rink now taking the lead, they continued through the forest, soon coming out in a small clearing. The ground was a bit more damp with less trees as shelter, but it had definitely been cleared out by someone, being far too neat to be entirely natural. And that was the smallest bit of evidence that they weren't alone - there was also a ring of stones around the remains of a campfire, and at the side of a large rock at the other side of the clearing...

"Over there," Rink said and pointed towards it. There were some things on the ground, some jars, a bag, lying around... whatever it was. But it was moving. Only a little, but there was something alive on the ground.  
"Be careful..." Muse walked up in front of Rink, with her bow at the ready. The two of them approached slowly, and as they got closer, noticed that it seemed to be a person, but... different. Closing in even further, Rink heard a groan coming from it, but it didn't seem like it had noticed them. The rest of the group were approaching as well with a bit of a distance to Muse and Rink, prepared for whatever might come at them.

Nothing ever did come at them. Rink and Muse realized it wasn't going to do anything, and waved for the others to come closer. As they gathered a few steps away from the being lying on the ground, it rolled over, revealing what the source of the mysterious sound was.

Its shape was largely humanoid, with a stocky build, lying under a brown blanket. But its skin was not of a colour expected in a regular person - and not a single colour, either. It was primarily a matted blue, with instances of a more grayish shade, and some quite dark spots. Its eyes were closed, but on its neck seemed to be several slits, and on the sides of its mouth, two thin growths could be seen, almost like a moustache made out of skin. A white tuft of hair was situated at the back of its head. It was breathing heavily, shifting about, not sleeping but appearing to be in pain. At this point, it was clear to some of the party what they had ran into.

"What _is_ that?" Muse asked.  
"I think... it looks like a fishman," Mirise replied. "If that's what Rink heard... does that mean..."  
"What's one doing _here_ , though?" Allen commented.  
"Please..." the fishman spoke, still not looking at them. "If there is... somebody here..."  
"Let me see!" Markus exclaimed and walked past the others, who were still keeping a distance to their discovery.  
"Markus, wait-" Muse started.  
"He's clearly in pain!" Markus interrupted and crouched down next to the fishman. "Can you hear me? Are you okay?"  
"My body... my skin..."  
"What?" Markus said and pulled off the blanket. The fishman was wearing only a simple white tunic, and Markus could quickly see several more of the dark spots on his uncovered arms and legs. It became immediately obvious to him that it wasn't a variation in skin colour - it was something else entirely. "This is... bad."  
"What?" Rink asked as she joined Markus, the others following in various states of caution.  
"It's... he's got some kind of necrotizing fasciitis..." Markus explained and stood up, keeping his eyes on the fishman. "It seems like it's still in the early stages, but he absolutely needs immediate help!"  
"And... using real words, that means..."  
"It's an infection. It affect the body's soft tissue, and, well, kills it. If not treated, it's going to spread, and if it gets _really_ bad, you can lose entire limbs because of it."  
"So how do you treat it?"  
"I have to cut away the affected tissue to prevent it from spreading any further..." Markus stated and reached into his inner coat pockets, eventually pulling out something wrapped in plastic. "A-ha, I knew I had a scalpel here somewhere."  
"Aren't those, like... really sharp? You just carry those around in your pockets?" Rink asked.  
"It's for exactly this kind of situation," Markus replied with a sly grin. "But I would like to have some more equipment, I should have brought... Mirise?"  
"Yes?"  
"Could you run back to _Cassandra_ and grab my medical kit? I can get started here, but I need some more things... the small white case with a green cross on it..."  
"Of course!" Mirise replied and looked at the map she had been drawing. It didn't have much in terms of landmarks and really only covered the path they had been going, but she figured it would be enough to quickly find her way to the ship and back again. "I'll be back as soon as I can," she added before starting to jog in the direction they had landed.  
"Also..." Markus looked back at the fishman, then the others. "We need to get a fire going, I need boiling water for sterilizing... I have gloves in the kit, but at least it's not the kind of thing that spreads by just touching it..."  
"Right," Rink said and looked around where the ailing fishman was lying. She spotted a cauldron among his possessions, which she hauled over to the campfire. "Well, fire will be no problem, but we still need to fill this up with water..."  
"Hold on," Muse said and looked around. "If he set up camp here, there should be a water source nearby..." she continued and looked up at the rock that the fishman appeared to have been using as his natural shelter. She went up to it, looking around it before disappearing behind it but soon returning from the other side of it.  
"Any luck?" Rink asked.  
"Yes, but... it's weird," Muse replied. "There is a hole with water on the other side here, but I didn't see any animals around, and it didn't have any visible source."  
"It'll have to do," Rink commented and stood up. "Help me with this cauldron, will you?"  
"Okay," Muse replied and put her bow down on the ground. Rink had no problems carrying the empty cauldron on her own, but filled up with water, it wasn't going to be a one-woman job. Muse showed the way to the water hole, and while it wasn't big, they had no issues lowering the cauldron and filling it up with water. They hoisted it up, and Muse lowered a cupped hand into it bringing it to her mouth to take a small drink - and immediately spat it out again.  
"Something wrong with the water?" Rink asked.  
"It's... it's salty," Muse answered. "This is sea water!"  
"That's... odd," Rink noted. "But it'll do, especially since we're going to boil it anyway." They returned to the others, where Markus and Mirise were helping James dismount Allen and get seated on the ground. Allen had apparently grown tired of carrying him, and turned back into a human once James was off.  
"Are you really going to help him? It's a fishman..." James whispered to Markus. "They're supposed to be violent, don't like humans..."  
"I've heard that too, but... he's seriously ill, James," Markus replied and stood up. "It's my duty as a doctor to help him."  
"If you say so..."  
"Alright, we've got the water," Rink said as she and Muse put the cauldron down next to the stones circling the fireplace. "I just need to get some firewood..."  
"So what about the food situation?" James asked. "This isn't what we came here for."  
"We should help out however we can," Rink replied as she collected bits of trees lying on the ground at the edge of the clearing, breaking off some low-hanging branches to add to the fuel as well. "That said, there's probably no need for all of us to be here with Markus, so..."  
"If one or two of you could stay and help, at least, that would be good," Markus stated as he crouched down next to the fishman again. "Can you hear me? It's going to be fine, I'm going to help you..." He got no reply, the fishman clearly teetering on the edge of unconsciousness.  
"Well, it's not much of a question, really..." Rink looked around at the group. "James isn't going anywhere, Markus has the surgery to do, Mirise helps Markus, and I'm no hunter... so that leaves the two survivalists among us."  
"Me, and..." Muse started.  
"Me," Allen added.  
"What about you, Rink?" James asked. "You could hear where things are..."  
"I could, but I really don't think I'm suited for it," Rink replied from next to the fireplace, lighting a match and setting fire to a little pile of firewood she had piled up. Bringing matches everywhere in the case of wanting a smoke was becoming a better and better idea by the day. "I grew up on a farm, and while I've had to fend for myself... I've been a city girl. I used my skills to get money for food. I know nothing about hunting in a forest. I could listen _to_ everything that's around, but I wouldn't know what to listen _for_."  
"I'm sure we'll be fine," Allen assured them. "I know how to track things."  
"And you don't want to be too many when hunting," Muse added. "I'm more used to hunting as just a pair anyway..."  
"So that's decided, then," Rink noted. "The two of you look for food, and the rest of us stay here and assist Markus in saving that guy."  
Muse and Allen nodded at each other and took off into the forest again, in the direction opposite the one they had come from.  
"Just be careful," Markus said as they disappeared. "I don't want two more patients."  
"Water's heating up, not quite boiling yet," Rink said.  
"Well... come help me bring him over to the fire," Markus requested and nodded towards the fishman. Rink assisted in the transfer, and soon Markus was on his knees next to the cauldron, his patient in front of him. Markus removed the fishman's tunic and looked down at his body - he could identify six spots that required immediate attention, thankfully none of them dangerously large yet, most of the affected areas being on his right arm and right upper torso but with smaller instances of the infection showing up all over his body. Tracing the initial cut with the scalpel in the air first, he brought the blade down to the fishman's scales...


	36. Hunt and gather

"This forest is so... alive," Muse noted as she and Allen went deeper inside the forest. "I haven't seen nature this untouched since..."  
"Since when?" Allen asked in response to Muse trailing off without finishing what she was about to say. He had gone back to being a hyena, as it let him pick up on scents better.  
"It... just reminds me of the forest on... the island I grew up," Muse replied, slightly reluctantly, turning away from Allen as she said it.  
"Where do you come from, anyway?"  
"I don't like talking about it."  
"Alright, alright, I get it. It actually reminds me of my home island, too. My parents were woodcutters, we lived right at the edge of a massive forest. Hell, that thing was such a feature of the island that it's what it was named after. But I know what you mean... pretty sure I have more unhappy memories than happy ones from that place."  
"Do you smell anything?" Muse asked, partly to change the subject so she wouldn't have to think of the Pua any more than necessary. Still, going hunting for the first time since her exile was going to bring up memories of hunting on Puamoku, whether or not she wanted to remember... so she decided to focus entirely on the task at hand in an attempt to keep her mind off of all the memories that surrounded it.  
"Not much, no. There's the scent of those small critters, but other than that..."  
"There should be something more than just mushrooms here, at least," Muse commented. Their findings so far added up to seven mushrooms and a handful of berries that they had identified as edible, albeit very sour. They knew there were birds but hadn't been able to get any opportunity to try to shoot one down, and the only other animal they knew were around was some type of small mammal. Going by the trails they had found, it appeared to be somewhere in between the size of a rat and a cat, and most likely either some sort of rodent or lagomorph. Sure, they could get meat out of an animal like that, but being that small they'd have to kill a lot of them to get enough food to be meaningful, and they didn't want to disturb the ecosystem of the island _too_ much. Unwittingly causing the extinction of whatever it was was not quite what they were here for.

As they continued further into the forest, they had at best middling success with what they had set out to do. They gathered some more mushrooms and berries, and eventually actually spotted one of the small animals they knew were around, confirming it to be a rodent. They also came across some bird's nests and momentarily considering swiping some eggs, but nothing they had found would be a lasting solution. In either case, they were sure there had to be something else to find - an ecosystem such as this required it. Given how quickly rodents often tended to reproduce when undisturbed, and how sparse they actually seemed to be, there had to be _something_ that kept them - and anything else - in check.

"Hold on," Allen eventually whispered. "I smell... something. Not sure what yet."  
"Where?"  
"Straight ahead, mostly."  
"I'll check..." Muse replied and silently advanced. She looked around, searching the ground and the trees for signs, and soon crouched down next to one of the trunks. "That's weird..."  
"What?" Allen asked and joined her. Close to the ground, slightly below eye level for Allen in his current form, the bark of the tree had been damaged. And this certainly hadn't been done by the rodents - this was something with larger claws, or teeth, or something of the sort. "What do you think?"  
"A predator," Muse answered. "But I can't tell what kind."  
"Which means, let's be careful."  
"Yeah..." Muse said and turned around. She scanned the ground ahead of her as she kept moving, and had only taken a few steps when she spotted the first footprint. It was a strange one, though - the imprint in the ground almost looked like a human hand, with five fingers, the main difference being that the tips came to a very sharp point where it went deeper into the ground than the rest of it. Obviously something with claws, but...  
"That's... new," Allen noted as he looked down at it. He brought his nose down to it and took a whiff. "And it's, well, new. Fresh." Looking up and moving in the direction of the footprint, he soon spotted another one, and then another one. Allen and Muse glanced at each other for a moment, nodded and started slowly moving in the direction the prints seemed to be heading. Muse pulled out an arrow, and they proceeded in silence for a while. They found more prints, some going in the same general direction, some going the other way - but they elected to continue on the trail they had found. It wasn't too long until they found the place the prints were leading to - a fairly nondescript hole in an elevated piece of terrain, with small bones strewn around the opening. The hole was big enough that they could easily crawl inside if they wished to, but they didn't consider that a good idea. Whatever they had found, it was definitely the burrow of the creature they were trailing... that they were hunting. If it was as big as it seemed from the tracks it left, it hopefully had quite a bit of meat on it. Muse took aim in the direction of the burrow and pulled the arrow back, while Allen sneaked up to the opening. He listened, smelled and looked, but found nothing - whatever lived here wasn't home at the moment. He looked at Muse and shook his head, when suddenly a growl was heard from behind the burrow.

They looked up and heard something approach, much faster than expected. A louder roar accompanied the arrival of the homeowner, who was now standing above the burrow and looking down at Allen. It was a reptile of considerable size - larger than Allen's hyena form, with thick gray scales over its entire body, a large mouth with sharp teeth, with a wide protrusion at the back of its head, giving it a shield-like appearance, and four stubby legs, each ending in a foot with five quite dangerous-looking claws. There was no doubt that this was a carnivore, and definitely a predator. It raised one of its front legs and started moving towards Allen, who had started backing away, when Muse let her arrow fly, striking it between the eyes - where the arrow simply bounced off. Allen and Muse exchanged a quick glance as Allen set off towards her, the reptile soon starting to follow.  
"Get on my back!" Allen shouted as he approached. It wasn't the most graceful of mountings, but Muse managed to get on Allen's back, facing backwards - looking right at the creature that was chasing them. For having such short legs, it was surprisingly fast. She fired another arrow, but it too was deflected by its hide.  
"What in the world _is_ that?" she exclaimed.  
"I have no idea but I don't like it," Allen replied. "Do you think you can kill it?"  
"My arrows just bounce off!" Muse replied. "Hold on, let me try..." she continued and shot another one, this one catching fire as it struck - but their pursuer didn't even seem to notice it. An electric charge didn't do much either. Even if it was an unsteady ride as Allen and Muse moved back through the forest, they were helped by the fact that due to its wide head, the reptile sometimes could not pass through the trees as cleanly, often hitting them as it went past. At least that explained the bark being torn off, and while it slowed it down a bit, it didn't actually seem to bother it more than that, and they could definitely not count on it getting stuck anywhere. "This isn't working. Any ideas?"  
"I don't know," Allen said. "I don't know if I can fight that thing on my own if it's that strongly armoured... we'll have to..."  
"You don't mean-"  
"Pretty sure it's the only choice we have," Allen replied as he sped up as much as he could. "Just hold on tight!"

* * *

Rink wiped some sweat off Markus's brow as he finished cutting away another patch of dead skin from the fishman's arm. He slowly peeled it off, placed it together with the other skin he had removed so far in a small hole in the ground, handed the scalpel over to Rink who lowered the blade into the boiling water, while Mirise - as per Markus's instructions - dabbed the fresh wound with a wad of cotton dipped in rubbing alcohol before Markus sealed it up as best as he could. It was the first time he operated on a fishman - first time he ever saw one, even, and there hadn't been a lot of mentions of them in the medical books he had studied - and if this one was any indication, they at the very least had much tougher skin than humans. More slippery, too - he had to make his cuts very slowly to avoid slipping and cutting something he didn't intend to cut, be it on the fishman or himself. He had started on the chest, getting rid of the largest lesions first, then proceeded to the right arm, carefully getting rid of every trace of the ailment he could spot. He wasn't sure how much of his incisions the fishman could actually feel, and he wished he could have administered some kind of anesthetic, but at least the patient wasn't complaining - and Markus hoped he could tell that they were trying to help him.

"So... this fishman really sounds like me?" Mirise whispered to Rink as Markus got started on the next incision.  
"You know how I said you sound like the sea?" Rink whispered back. "Well, I hear the same thing here. And you're the only other living thing I have ever heard that in. Not even fish have that."  
"Do you think it could mean that I'm part fishman?"  
"Who knows? There's more of him that doesn't sound like you. I've never actually heard a fishman before, not that I know of, but... this guy's a mess. I don't know what they're supposed to sound like... but it certainly can't be like _this_. It's like... his body is in conflict with itself. Like it's hurting, in some way, beyond that... necro... face..."  
"Necrotizing fasciitis," Markus corrected, apparently having heard more of their conversation than they intended.  
"That. And people who are sick... they usually barely sound any different at all. So I don't know what this is."  
"Huh..." Mirise said and administered another helping of rubbing alcohol. She remained curious, but decided to ask more later, when Markus was done and the fishman had woken up.

The pile of dead skin kept growing, and Markus was soon cutting away bits that were quite small, but he knew that everything had to be taken care of. He had carefully gone over the fishman's body several times, and couldn't be sure if he had actually found everything, given that he wasn't too knowledgeable about fishman anatomy. He had started removing a cluster of lesions on the fishman's back when Rink stood up and looked in the direction Muse and Allen had left.

"Um... guys?" she said.  
"Wait, I'm not done with this yet..." Markus replied.  
"We... might have to take a break, actually. Depending on what this is."  
"What?" Mirise asked.  
"Well, Muse and Allen are on their way back... but they're running and they're being chased by something that I wish I had the slightest idea what it was."  
"You think they're in danger?" Mirise asked and stood up as well.  
"Probably. And if they're in danger, and heading _this_ way..."  
"Then they need help," Mirise said with a nod as water started dripping from her hair. Rink pulled out a tuning fork from her pocket - and since W4, she had decided to always wear her arm guard when away from the ship.  
"I can't- I have to finish this," Markus commented. He had taken off his coat and his swords, which were currently lying on the ground next to James, who was writing something in a notebook he had brought with him. He was close enough to hear that trouble was on the way, but in his state, there wasn't anything he could do even if he wanted to. Even if it was probably meaningless, just for safety's sake, he put the notebook and pen back in his pocket and grabbed one of Markus's swords. But hopefully, the rest of them could deal with whatever was about to happen.

And what happened was that Allen with Muse on his back came rushing into the clearing, with the lizard close behind.  
"Muse!" Rink shouted. "What's-"  
"I don't know but it's got an incredibly tough hide," Muse replied before anyone had the time to say anything else. "Do something!"  
"Uh... okay," Rink offered and sent two sound bullets towards it, bullets that did absolutely nothing. She followed up with a high-pitched shriek, which momentarily stopped the lizard, but not nearly long enough for anyone to be able to do anything.

The shriek had, however, succeeded in doing something else - it woke up, to whatever degree that applied, the fishman. He opened his eyes and raised his head, looking up at Markus.  
"What is... occurring..."  
"Well, uh, there's some big lizard here, and-"  
"The lizards here... a dangerous sort..."  
"We figured that out, the others are trying to take care of it, you just take it easy-"  
"I must... help... I know what..."  
"You're still not in any shape to do anything, you're going to have to-"  
"Please... give me... from my pack... the glass jar, with... black-and-white pills..."  
"I- I don't think that-"  
"Quick, you must... give me one, and... my scythe..."  
"Your... what? You're in no shape to fight!"  
"Please..."  
"Oh, for-" Markus said and turned around. "Mirise, go get this guy's pack and... apparently there's a scythe too, so get that too!"  
"Okay!" Mirise replied and ran over to where the fishman had been lying earlier. She found a large cloth bag with a shoulder strap that she grabbed on to, and next to it on the ground, there was indeed a scythe. She picked it up by the end of the shaft and dragged both of the items over to Markus, before rejoining the efforts to keep the lizard at bay. With four of them and their various abilities, that was currently not the biggest problem, but they were probably not going to be able to keep it up forever - and it didn't show any signs of intending to retreat back into the forest sometime soon.  
"Jar, jar..." Markus opened the bag, which was filled with various containers containing an assortment of pills, powders, plants and the like. He soon found what looked like the thing that had been requested - a small glass jar, holding four oblong pills, white with irregular black spots. He took one out and looked at it for a second. "So, what is..."  
"Give it to me..." the fishman repeated and opened his mouth. Markus just shook his head but did as he had been asked, and the fishman bit down on the pill with his sharp teeth, chewing it up before swallowing it. He closed his eyes for a second, rolled over so that he was facing upwards, then opened his eyes wide - and far more intense than before. The previously white sclera around his red irises had taken on a yellow hue, and the blood vessels within them had become much more visible. He shot up, almost knocking Markus over, grabbed the scythe lying next to him and started running towards the lizard. As he was approaching, his body started getting covered in black fur, and two tusks appeared at the edges of his mouth. His nose seemed to have been flattened, too. With a snarl, he approached the lizard.  
"What the-" Allen said as the changed fishman leaped towards the lizard, holding his scythe behind him.  
"Forgive me!" he exclaimed as he rotated his body, sending the scythe into a wide vertical swing - and before anybody had really managed to figure out what was going on, the lizard's head fell to the ground, separated from its body. Blood started spraying from the neck before the body collapsed, next to the fishman - who also collapsed, now definitely unconscious, having reverted to his regular state. He was bleeding as well. Markus stood up and looked at the scene in front of him, briefly regretting that he had let the fishman have that pill.  
"Get- get him back here immediately!" he exclaimed. Allen (back in human form), Muse and Rink carried his body back to Markus, who looked at it with a sigh. Many of the wounds he had just closed had opened up again, and he quickly set Mirise to work at cleaning them again as he got started on sealing them... again.

Meanwhile, the others were taking in what had just happened. Allen looked at the body of the lizard that they had had so much trouble with, that the fishman had killed in one strike. Though it was always easier to take care of things like that when you knew what their weak spot was, he thought, and it wasn't like they had gotten any opportunities to attack it in the neck before.  
"Well... at least that explains it," Rink said and glanced at the fishman. Of course. A fishman, a creature of the sea... who had eaten a devil fruit, rejecting him from the same. _Of course_ that had to be it, the reason why his body seemed so at odds with itself. Humans with devil powers did have a certain sound to them, but the fishman sounded so different in so many other ways, that it wasn't until Rink listened specifically for that particular quality that she even noticed that it existed at all within him. That was one of the downsides to the whole thing about hearing all kinds of things - sounds that belonged to the same thing had a tendency to blend together _very_ easily.  
"That was not one of my better hunting trips," Muse sighed as she dragged a hand across the lizard's hide. It was quite the creature, this - tail included, even without the head on it was easily over two metres long. She tapped on its scales, wondering why it would need a hide this thick in a place like this. But maybe she could use it for something...  
"Well, you brought something back, at least," Rink noted and walked up next to Muse before locking her eye on the lizard's body. "Sooo... you think this thing is edible?"


	37. The Bluefin Expedition

The fishman stayed unconscious but alive for the better part of the following hour. Markus, with some assistance from Mirise, used the time to make sure that every spot of affected skin was gone and that every wound had been cleaned and sealed - or re-sealed, in a number of cases. He stayed by the fishman's side to make sure he wasn't getting worse, but didn't know exactly what had happened either, so he had quite the host of questions for when he actually did wake up. As he finally opened his eyes again and started groaning, Markus laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you alright?" he asked.  
"I am... fine." the fishman replied. "Thanks to you..."  
"What was... what did you do there?"  
"I... I did what I had to. Are you all... unhurt?"  
"Well, you took care of that lizard thing, all right... we got away with just the shock."  
"That is... that is good," the fishman said and sat up. He looked at Markus and lowered his head. "Thank... thank you for trying to help me. My name is Charon... I am a medic and apothecary from Fishman Island, in the Grand Line."  
"Nice to meet a fellow practitioner," Markus said and stretched out his hand. "Markus Flint. Physician from North Blue."  
"That one such as you would be the one to find me... you saved my life, despite what I am, and for that I am deeply grateful."  
"I only did what I knew I had to do, too," Markus said. "So what in the world was that thing? What was that pill?"  
"The medicine I consumed... was a fake Steroid."  
"Fake? Seemed to me like it worked pretty well..."  
"There has for a considerable time existed a story on Fishman Island, a legend of a medicine that would give the one who consumed it the strength of a thousand..." Charon explained. "It has been whispered about in every corner of my home, from the Imperial Palace to the slums of the Fishman District. The miracle drug... the Energy Steroid."  
"So that was..."  
"The stories of the Energy Steroid are so numerous, that it is hard to know which have basis in the truth... but many are those who have tried to recreate the Energy Steroid, tried to make that which might not exist. Create the legend, _become_ a legend... and ensure the position for fishmen as the strongest species."  
"And that's what that pill was? You managed to make this... 'Energy Steroid'?"  
"Far from it," Charon replied. "I was no exception, I too attempted to produce the ultimate medicine, pursue the miracle drug, but only in an attempt to understand it. That was the closest approximation I have ever produced, and it is a deeply flawed version of it. It will work, I believe, only on myself, and the increased strength that it provides lasts but for a few moments, followed by major fatigue."  
"Well... it saved us, at any rate... even if I had to patch you back up again afterwards."  
"I am eternally grateful for your help," Charon said as he bowed his head and put a hand on the bandages on his chest.  
"Yeah, you said that already. I'm just glad I was able to help you," Markus stated. "So... do you have any idea why you were like that?"  
"I believe that the condition I was in was the result of a spider biting me," Charon replied. "I wandered into a web that I did not see, and felt a sharp sting on my arm in the moment that followed... I could not see the spider itself before it had escaped, but the following morning I began finding affected spots on my body."  
"How long ago was that?"  
"It has been, I believe, ten days since it occured... I attempted to create a medicine with which to cure myself, and while it slowed the affliction, it was clear that it was not enough to heal my body... and I could not have performed the procedure that you did on myself."  
"Well, I'm pretty certain I got all of it, at least. We burned and buried most of the affected skin, but I saved some small samples for potential study. I hope it didn't hurt too much when I cut into you, I didn't have any anaesthetic..."  
"I... felt the procedure, but the pain from the affliction was a greater one than the pain from your blade," Charon replied. "Fishmen like myself are built tough..."  
"Yeah, that was pretty obvious... it was more like cutting leather than skin. So, anyway... you make medicines, then?"  
"Yes, I am an apothecary by trade... I create mixtures, pills, powders, potions, salves... mainly for healing the body, but some also for strengthening it, and a select few for causing harm, when such is required... but only when absolutely necessary."  
"I'm a bit short of medicines right now, my last shopping trip was kind of... interrupted," Markus chuckled. "Perhaps you'll let me buy some of yours."  
"Out of the question," Charon bluntly replied.  
"Oh... are they only for-"  
"I will not accept any money from my saviour," Charon continued. "I will gladly donate anything you might require, to return the favour."  
"Oh! Well, I can't say no to that, then. Maybe I've got some medical equipment you might need, too."  
"For the time being, I have little need of any additional tools..."  
"Well, we might still have something you need," Markus said and looked over at the others, who were mostly gathered around the fire. "But I think it's about time to eat."

While Markus was patching up and keeping an eye on Charon, the others had, under Rink's supervision, been working on preparing the food. Getting the meat out of the lizard had taken some work, but once they had figured out how to get under the scales it had just been a matter of carving out enough chunks for seven people. They had concluded that the meat was safe to eat, even if somewhat rubbery in texture and lacking in taste. But it was by far the best they had, and so had opted to cut it into small bits and boil it in a stew. Mirise and Allen had been sent to pick up some additional cookware, plates and bowls, spices and the bag of rice from _Cassandra_ , to add a little more taste and components to the meal. Muse had done a quick trip into the immediately surrounding forest to find some more mushrooms, since they had dropped part of their earlier harvest when escaping from the lizard. Even James had assisted, mainly with the task of cutting the meat into smaller pieces. Currently, Mirise was watching the rice, as Rink was stirring the large cauldron with the main course. She leaned down, brought the ladle to her mouth, tasted the stew and nodded.  
"Food's done," she announced. "Gather 'round, everyone!"  
"The rice is done too," Mirise added and stood up. Save for James, who didn't have any real choice but to remain sitting down, everyone present did as instructed and gathered around the cauldron, being handed plates or bowls and spoons by Rink.  
"So, we've got lizard stew with grilled mushrooms and rice," she explained. "Dig in!"  
It may perhaps have not been in the most orderly of fashions, but they lined up in front of the cauldron to get their food, Allen holding an extra plate for James. As Rink was about to serve Charon, however, he raised his hand to stop her.  
"I hope you will not take offense, but I will decline the stew..." he said.  
"Eh? Why?"  
"I do not consume meat, if given the choice, even though I was responsible for killing this one..." Charon explained. "I refrain from killing as far as I am able, but it is not always a choice that is given... I will do what I must to survive."  
"Huh... well, fine, we've got plenty of rice and I didn't use all of the mushrooms we found in the stew, so take what you want," Rink said. "But that's surprising... don't take this the wrong way, but I always heard that fishmen were a violent sort."  
"The reputation my species has is not an unfounded one..." Charon said with a sigh. "It is true that many are quick to anger, and consider themselves superior to other beings... several among my own kin found me weak."  
"Seems harsh... either way, take what you want. Nobody's going hungry on my watch."

Soon they were all sitting down in an approximate circle with their food, eating heartily. Even if they had done what they could to improve the lizard meat, it was definitely a meal eaten more for filling than for being tasty. But given the situation they were in, nobody had any reason to complain.

"So, what was that lizard, anyway?" Muse asked between bites, looking at Charon.  
"I do not know if they have a proper name, but I have called them shield monitors... they are the apex predator of this island, the only large carnivores here..."  
"I don't understand this ecosystem," Muse commented. "The birds and those rodents, sure... but those lizards are way too extreme for a place like this."  
"I concur," Charon said with a nod. "I cannot tell if they originated here, perhaps became what they are in competition with other predators, eventually eradicating the others... or if they were brought here and took over the island. They certainly are a territorial sort, I have never seen more than one at a time..."  
"At least you know how to deal with them," Allen commented with a grin.  
"I have been forced to kill two of them previously... their scales are exceedingly tough, but they have soft necks... severing their head in a single strike is the only sure way to fell them."  
"And you found that out when one attacked you?" Muse asked.  
"No, I had earlier happened to come upon the carcass of a recently deceased one, and I took the opportunity to study it. I did not require it at the time, but I concluded that if needed, the teeth and claws might be utilized as cutting implements, and I learned about its anatomy... and so I knew how to approach if one should assault me."  
"Well, I can probably think of some more ways to make use of it," Muse said and looked over at the half cut open body of the lizard. "Natural hide that tough is rare..."  
"You're going to drag that whole thing with you?" James asked with a raised eyebrow.  
"Maybe not all of it... but I think we need to bring it for the meat either way."  
"You do as you wish..." Charon said. "But to thank you for all you have done for me, let me tell you my story..."  
"Except for Markus, we didn't do that much, did we?" James whispered to Rink.  
"Shhh."  
"I was a part of the Bluefin Expedition, a crew that set out from the Grand Line about a year and a half ago. Our crew consisted primarily of scholars, and our trip was one for exploration and research... but we knew that humans, especially Marines, would not be our allies..."

* * *

 _Twenty months earlier..._

"The preparations are all complete, yes?"  
"The crew has been assembled, and the _Argo_ is ready to launch. We are looking to leave within the hour..."  
"Then, on behalf of all of Ryugu, I wish you luck on your journey, and hope that you will make many important discoveries, yes."  
"I don't know how much there is left to discover... or how much the humans will let us discover."  
"The world has changed a lot since the Pirate King was executed, yes."  
"But has it changed for the better? We fishmen have for long been considered beneath the humans... even though we are superior."

In the throne room of the Imperial Palace of Ryugu, in the center of Fishman Island in the Grand Line, a single fishman was bowing before the king. He was facing the ground with his eyes closed, with his right knee and fist on the floor. His body was primarily a greenish gray, with the fins on his head and arms outlined in bright blue, as was common in the bluefin trevally. This was Pluto Bluefin, fishman archaeologist, captain of the newly assembled Bluefin Expedition. In front of him, sat upon his throne, was King Neptune - a giant coelacanth merman, with a muscular upper body, long, orange, curly hair covering his entire back underneath his large golden crown, and a beard to match.

"Do not hate the humans..." came a weak voice from the entrance of the room. Pluto, knowing the voice well, turned his head to find the source of it.  
"Queen Otohime," he said. "I did not know you were listening..."  
"I... just arrived," the blonde, thin, frail-looking goldfish mermaid, queen of the Ryugu Kingdom, replied as she walked towards her husband. "I had a feeling..."  
"I won't make any promises I'm not sure I'll be able to keep," Pluto said and stood up. "But the less humans we have to deal with on our journey, the better."  
"You are sure you do not want any guards with you, yes?" Neptune asked as Pluto turned around and started leaving the throne room.  
"I have all the people I want and need," he replied and looked back. "My king, my queen... I will return in three year's time, as agreed."  
"I look forwards to hearing what you have discovered when you return, yes," the king said.  
"Safe travels..." Otohime added in a meek voice as she watched Pluto exit the throne room.  
"What do you really think?" Neptune asked, still looking at the door.  
"About... what?" his wife asked in response.  
"About these research trips," the king replied. "This is the third to launch since Gold Roger's death, yes."  
"We must learn," Otohime said. "If the citizens are ever to be able to agree with the humans, we must first understand them."  
"You have more hope than the rest of the kingdom put together, my dear queen," Neptune noted. "I pray that it is not misguided."

"Fancy that, a visit to the royal palace," a voice called out to Pluto as he left the main gates of the palace. "Aren't you the famous one."  
"Anubi," Pluto commented as he spotted the speaker swimming in a pool of water next to the path he was walking on. A black-haired mermaid with thick glasses, wearing a black leather top, with primarily black scales on her tail with three wide fins at the end. "I told you I didn't need any accompaniment."  
"Hel insisted," Anubi replied. She was a marble angelfish mermaid, and one of Pluto's crew - being the Bluefin Expedition's linguist and philologist. "You know how she can be."  
"I know too well," Pluto replied. "You can tell her I'm on my way, and I take whatever time I want."  
"If you say so," Anubi said as she dived back underwater and swam off, much faster than Pluto had any chance of keeping up with.

As suggested, Pluto took his time making his way to the docks where his ship, the _Argo_ , lay ready and coated. A small group of people had gathered in front of it to see the expedition off, primarily the families of the crew. It was not the largest vessel, but it had more than enough room for its crew of seven, plus any sort of samples they might want to bring back. The front quarter of the upper deck held a pool of water, mainly for the merman and mermaid on board, but also for keeping any marine specimens they wished to study. Atop the mast, the expedition's flag was flying - a white flag with a basic, blue outline of a fish in the middle, intersected by the black outline of a quill over it. As Pluto approached, he was not surprised to see what was waiting for him - next to the gangway, a tall, slender, greenish-yellow figure, with her arms crossed. From her arms and legs, long, thin, wide protrusions draped across her body, almost giving the impression that she was wearing a dress. It was Hel, ecologist and the expedition's cook - a leafy sea dragon fishwoman - that was waiting for her captain.  
"You're late," was the first thing she said as he came close enough.  
"We did not decide on a specific time to leave, Hel," Pluto replied and looked up at her as he passed. She was easily the tallest of the crew, standing three heads taller than the already imposing presence of Pluto. She was quite thin, albeit appearing much larger due to her leaf-like growths. She followed him up on deck, where the rest of the crew was already waiting. There was Haros, the historian, a tiger shark fishman, the only one on the crew bigger than Pluto in all directions. Next to him, his younger brother, Charon, the medic and apothecary, a devil catfish fishman. Sitting down next to them with a book in hand, the very short, almost entirely white Izanami, the expedition's anthropologist, a white spot tetra fishwoman. And in the deck pool, next to Anubi, the ship's navigator and engineer - Somnu, an electric ray merman.  
"Welcome aboard, captain," Somnu said and got out of the pool, using a piece of bubbly coral to create a floating bubble to get around on. "She's all ready to go once you give the word."  
"Then there is no reason to wait any longer. I hope you have said your goodbyes and not left anything behind, because we will not be back for three years. I don't know what we'll find, but there are many mysteries left in the world, and perhaps we'll get to solve at least one of them!"  
"Then here we go," Somnu announced before _Argo_ started moving, soon breaching the giant bubble surrounding Fishman Island - marking the start of the Bluefin Expedition...


	38. A fish out of water

Nearly a year after _Argo's_ launch from Fishman Island, the Bluefin Expedition entered West Blue. The trip there had been more meticulous than what the return trip had been planned to be like - they made several stops on the way, exploring more or less uncharted islands and areas, trying to find out new information about anything they could locate. As they had hoped, interaction with humans was kept to a minimum - twice they had encountered human traders who didn't have anything against doing business with fishmen, and on occasion humans had noticed them from a distance but elected not to approach. They had some run-ins with pirates, but when able to had chosen to flee rather than fight, even if they had been forced to defend themselves at times. But however it was, they made it without any lasting damage or injuries. The intent was to stay almost two years in West Blue, followed by a trip back to Fishman Island that was estimated to take a month.

But as amicable traders were few and far between, avoiding humans meant they had to replenish their supplies through other means. With Hel in charge of that bit, they made a number of stops for that very reason.

And two months after reaching West Blue, the _Argo_ found itself anchored outside of a large, forested island...

"It's odd." Somnu, sitting on a floating bubble, looked towards the island.  
"What is?" Pluto asked in response.  
"This island doesn't appear on my charts."  
"You think there's anything to worry about?" Izanami asked.  
"How bad could it be?" Hel said as she rolled a barrel out on deck. "Besides, it doesn't look like there's any people living there. We have some things to refill..." she continued before heading back inside the cabins.  
"...and that's even the more reason to take a look," Anubi added. "We're here to find new things, after all."  
"Right you are," Pluto agreed. "So... Somnu and Anubi stay on the ship for now, the rest of us see what we can find. We'll let you know if you're needed."  
"Alright," Anubi said with a nod.  
"Then I shall get my equipment," Charon said and went inside, soon coming back out wearing a light brown cloak with a hood, carrying a cloth bag over his shoulder, a scythe on his back and a sickle on his belt. Hel soon followed with an empty sack and a large cauldron. Despite looking like she probably shouldn't be able to, she carried it with ease.  
"Haros, you get the barrel!"  
"If you say so," Haros replied and grabbed it. He was the first to jump off the ship into the sea, followed by Pluto, Charon, Hel and Izanami. They swam ashore, looking up at the trees in front of them.  
"As much growth as there is here, I doubt anyone's been living here for hundreds of years," Hel commented.  
"Whoa..." Izanami, standing next to her, uttered in amazement. Next to Hel, she looked even shorter - standing up, she was barely as tall as Hel sitting down, though with Hel being so slender and Izanami being a tad pudgy (as she often opted to stay inside for days on end with her research and wasn't one to take care that she'd eat healthy), the white spotted tetra fishwoman was the heavier of the two.  
"It certainly is an impressive sight," Charon said. "It might not be Eve or Excited Mangrove, but that does not make this any less fascinating..."  
"So, what exactly are we looking for?" Haros asked and turned to Hel. "I mean, aside from what we're always looking for."  
"It's not too much," Hel replied. "I'd like having more fresh water, so a source of that would be good, and just food in general... I've already seen that there's birds here, so we should be able to grab some eggs."  
"No hunting?"  
"Not here. We don't need it."  
"Perhaps there are some unknown plants I can use here, too..." Charon mused.  
"We'll be on the lookout for anything of interest," Pluto commented. "Let's meet up back here in two hours."  
"I'll go with you, captain," Izanami said. "Anything interesting to you is probably to me as well, but I don't think we'll find much here."  
"I could use some assistance," Hel said and turned to Haros, who was still holding the barrel.  
"Alright, sure," he replied to the unspoken question.  
"I will join you as well," Charon said. "At least, for the time being."  
"There we have it, then," Pluto stated. "Good luck to you."  
"You two as well," Hel replied before she, Haros and Charon headed into the forest, while Pluto and Izanami started heading around the outskirts of the island.

While Haros assisted Hel, Charon wandered ahead of them further into the forest. He wasn't looking for anything specific, but there were certain types of plants and herbs that tended to be useful for medical purposes, and perhaps there was something new on an uncharted island. He investigated the trees and bushes he came across, collected some herbs that he was not surprised to find in this kind of environment, and found some tracks on the ground that he chose to not follow. Eventually, he found something peculiar - a bush, with a single fruit growing on it. A dark green fruit, about the size of an apple, hanging low to the ground. Charon did not recognize it, so he plucked it from the thin branch it was hanging from, and using his sickle cut a small piece from the top.

Had Charon been more careful, perhaps he could have noticed what it was he had found. But with the fruit's colouration, and everything being bathed in shade from the thick canopy of trees above, he would not spot the distinct spiral pattern on it until the next day, when he got the opportunity to examine what was left of the fruit. Because after smelling it, and not finding anything to be out of the ordinary with it, he placed the slice of the fruit into his mouth, and even though he noted that it tasted quite bad, swallowed it anyway. He was not worried about being poisoned - he always carried a number of general antidotes, and because of his profession, over the course of the years he had built up a higher than average resistance to poisonous substances.

But to a fishman, this was something that meant even more serious consequences than poison. Whether it was due to him being a fishman, or if something else played into it, Charon soon found himself unable to think clearly - and only moments later, he felt as if he was simultaneously unconscious and running through the forest at high speed.

At the same time, Pluto and Izanami had entered the forest. They were moving slowly, carefully investigating anything that looked like it might have any historical value, but they had so far failed to find even a single piece of evidence that this island had ever been settled by anyone. Izanami had sat down against a tree while Pluto examined a rock that turned out to be just a rock, when they heard a sound coming towards them. Izanami stood up and looked into the forest, and before either of them could react to what was happening, an animal came rushing towards them - a boar with black fur, and strangely enough for the people currently seeing it, seemingly wearing some sort of cape.

"What is-" Izanami started saying, but shut herself up as she saw the boar had suddenly decided to rush towards her. She tried jumping out of the way, and Pluto started running towards her, but to no avail - the boar struck her, sending her flying backwards and striking a tree.  
" _Izanami!_ " Pluto yelled as he stared at the boar, rage in his eyes. He cast a quick glance at Izanami, who groaned enough that it confirmed she was still alive, even if hurt, before taking a few long steps towards the boar. It had turned its attention to Pluto as well, and was rushing towards him. Pluto, being much sturdier than Izanami, remained standing after clashing with this new foe, the two of them pushing against each other.  
"Plu-to..." came a snarling sound from the boar.  
"Huh?" Pluto wasn't sure he had heard correctly, and he wasn't about to let the boar go. But soon, two other figures came running towards his location - Hel and Haros had noticed something was amiss.  
"Captain!" Haros shouted as he saw Pluto struggling against the boar. Looking at the two of them, he saw what the boar was wearing on its back - and he recognized it. "I didn't want to believe it..."  
"What?" Pluto asked.  
"That boar... it's wearing Charon's cloak," Haros replied. "Somehow... I think that boar _is_ Charon!"  
"What do you mean?"  
"We found this next to Charon's bag and tools," Hel replied and held up a dark green fruit with a part cut off.  
"A- a devil fruit? Did Charon..."  
"I don't know why, but..." Haros started saying.  
"If this thing really is Charon, he's clearly gone insane! He attacked Izanami!"  
"We have to stop him..." Haros continued.  
"I can't hold on like this for much longer..." Pluto said.  
"You two get ready to catch him, and then let him go," Hel said and walked a short distance behind Pluto.  
"Are you insane? If he hits you..."  
"Do as I say," Hel ordered.  
"Suit yourself!" Pluto snarled and let go, quickly moving to the side. The boar - Charon - immediately rushed towards Hel, who was holding out her arm with the leaf hanging down like a bullfighter's cape. She gracefully avoided getting hit, and shook her leaves to regain Charon's attention. She kept this up for a few passes, only getting lightly grazed twice, as Pluto and Haros coordinated their approach. One sweeping motion from Hel later, Charon ran past her, and the two strong fishmen leaped at him from opposite sides, their combined strength being enough to hold him down.  
"Charon! Can you hear me? It's me, Haros! Your brother, Haros! Charon, stop this!"  
"Ha-ros..." Charon grunted and let up his struggle somewhat. His attempts at wriggling free from his captors lessened somewhat, and while Haros attempted to talk to him, he felt himself slipping away again - and as he truly lost conciousness, he reverted to his regular fishman form, the last thing he could hear being Haros shouting his name.

When Charon woke up half an hour later, the first thing he heard was Haros arguing with Pluto.  
"...still one of us!"  
"But what if he goes berserk again?"  
"We can handle it... _he_ can handle it."  
"Brother Haros..." Charon uttered as he looked up. Haros was the only one to approach him, while the other four kept their distance. Hel was tending to Izanami, who had mostly suffered from blunt trauma due to the impact, but Charon's tusk had left a minor but noticeable gash on her shoulder.  
"Charon! You're awake!"  
"I do not feel... like myself..."  
"You... you did change," Haros replied. "That fruit you found... it was..."  
"I was careless... I felt like... something else attempted to control me..."  
"The important part is that you're fine now," Haros said and put a hand on his little brother's shoulder. "Even if... even if you..."  
"What... what did I..."  
"Well... you did lose control, and attacked the rest of us," Haros explained. "You... you hurt Izanami pretty badly."  
"Let me... look at her wounds..."  
"She doesn't want to come near you. You frighten her... and the rest of the crew are on the fence about you too, now."  
"I... frighten myself, as I am now..." Charon uttered. "I do not trust myself... I might require some solitary time, to... manage this..."  
"What are you talking about?"  
"You should sail from here... without me."  
"We couldn't do that!"  
"Just... just for a short period of time. Until I understand what is happening to me, learn how to... control this..."  
"Well... alright. If that's really what you think is best... we'll come back for you in one week, you hear me?"  
"I believe that should suffice..."  
"We'll leave you some supplies, some food... and I'll convince them that you can figure this out. If anyone can, it's you."  
"I will use the time wisely..."  
"I know you will, little brother... I know you will."

After some additional persuading from Haros, Pluto and his crew accepted the proposed course of action. After leaving Charon with a few days worth of food (and the expectation that he could stretch it to a week by utilizing anything edible on the island), cooking implements, and a few other items to aid his survival and study of himself, the _Argo_ resumed its journey - this time with only six people on board...

* * *

"...and I have been waiting here since."  
"I like the style of that Hel woman," Rink commented with a grin.  
"So... they just left you here?" James said.  
"On my request, yes," Charon replied. "They were to return for me after one week..."  
"Wait... you said it had been ten days since you noticed your skin was dying," Markus commented. "They're late, huh?"  
"To date, since they sailed from this island... nearly six have passed."  
"Six weeks?"  
"No... six months."  
"...months? And they _still_ haven't shown up?"  
"No. I fear... I fear that something has happened to them, and they have been kept from returning..."  
"Or they just left you," Allen commented.  
"Haros would not have allowed that to happen. Even if the rest of the crew refused... _he_ would have returned for me. That is why I believe that some disaster befell the Bluefin Expedition shortly after they ventured from here... perhaps my remaining here spared me, but I regret not being able to be there for the others if they faced a dire situation."  
"Must have been something serious if it managed to take out a crew full of fishmen and mermen," Allen added.  
"We were not warriors, even if we were able to protect ourselves... it would be impossible to survive in this world otherwise. Captain Pluto was quite strong, and being a shark, brother Haros was likely the strongest of us all. But even then, we were scholars..."  
"Well, if they're still in West Blue... we're on a bit of a round trip..." Rink said.  
"Perhaps you could look out for them."  
"Maybe... or, rather..." she continued and looked at James, who was still writing in his notebook. Mirise and Markus's eyes turned to him as well.  
"So did you-" he said and looked back up. "...why is everybody looking at me?"  
"James..."  
"What- oh. _Oh._ No!"  
"We can't just leave him here!"  
"We're already out of space as it is!"  
"Don't you want to help?"  
"What if they come looking for him?"  
"They haven't for half a year, they're not _going_ to!" Rink said and turned to Charon. "No offense to your friends."  
"What you speak is true, but... I couldn't possibly impose..."  
"Impose nothing, this is about not wanting anything worse to happen to you."  
"Even... even if that is your intention, I do not know if there is any better place for me... as a fishman..."  
"There's weirder than you in the world," Allen noted. "And hey, at least you're not a criminal, like me!" he continued with a chuckle.  
"It _is_ true that fishmen have for a long time been considered, well... 'unclean'," Mirise said.  
"Humans fear that which is different," Charon commented. "And I am doubly so."  
"Either way," Rink interrupted, "being isolated on an island like this, with only those ridiculous lizards as company, isn't something anyone deserves. James, come on."  
James sighed. "Alright, alright. Fine. You've learned to control that transformation of yours by now, I suppose?"  
"What occurred the first time was an anomaly... after that, I have not once experienced anything like the loss of control I did from the initial change. It took me not even a day to figure out that I could change form at will, while retaining a clear head..."  
"Well, okay... you can come with us, at least to the next island..."  
"Then I will accept your offer," Charon said and looked at the cast on James's leg. "I do see that you have a wounded leg."  
"He's got a stable fracture, we're just waiting for it to heal," Markus explained.  
"Perhaps I can assist, let me see..." Charon said and walked over to his bags and started looking through them. Eventually he put something in a small bowl and went over with it to James. "Here... these should be of help."  
"What?" James said and grabbed the bowl. Inside it were eight small, round, white pills. "What are these?"  
"A medicine to promote bone growth," Charon replied. "Imbibe one of these every half day. It is no immediate cure, but it should serve to hasten your recovery."  
"Oh," James said. "I appreciate it."  
"With all that your companions have done for me, it is but a small repayment..."  
"Well, the sooner I get out of this cast, the better..." James swallowed one of the pills before putting the bowl down and pocketing his notebook. "So, okay - we've had our meal, we've got some meat to use until we reach a better island, and we've done today's good deed... _now_ can we look at _Cassandra_?"  
"Yeah, I don't think there's anything left to take care of here, is there?" Rink said and looked at Markus.  
"No, not to my knowledge. So... let's get all this stuff back to the boat, I suppose."

With the seven of them, even with James's injury, transporting everything including Charon's things back to _Cassandra_ only took a single trip. Since James wouldn't be a lot of help with the repairs, Rink enlisted him as assistance in carving out what remained of the meat, as they had to cut it into smaller pieces and salt it to ensure it wouldn't spoil. Muse took charge of the repair job, even if James threw in the occasional comments, with Allen providing muscle when needed. Mirise sat down with her maps (and, after making the necessary calculations, drew in the island they were currently on on her primary West Blue chart) to figure out the best way to continue. Markus and Charon provided whatever assistance they were asked for.

Without the tools to obtain form-fitting planks, they had to make do with what they were able to with the bits of wood they could produce. Both the inside and outside of the hull had started looking a bit like a wooden plaid, and more concerning, Muse noted that some of the small cracks were about to join together into a larger one.  
"Did you seriously not bring more tar than this?" she asked James as she coated strategically chosen parts of _Cassandra's_ insides.  
"I didn't think I would need that much in one go," he replied. "She wasn't built for the kind of crazy stuff the rest of you keep getting her into, you know."  
"Plan for the emergencies," Rink commented.  
"I've learned that _now_ , at least."  
"Well, I think that's as good as it's going to get," Muse stated as she stood up in the storage hatch, half of her still inside. "Gonna have to keep a close eye on it, though."  
"Better than nothing," Rink said and started handing Muse chunks of salted lizard meat wrapped in leaves. "As long as we don't break in half in the middle of the ocean."  
"Oh, we won't break in half, we'll just start taking in water and sink without really being able to do anything about it," Muse replied.  
"Would you stop it with the doomsday scenarios?" James asked.  
"That's what _will_ happen if we don't get it repaired for real," Muse said as she put the last bit of meat into the storage hold. "Could you bring the hide over here?"  
"Sure," Rink said and dragged what remained of the cut open lizard to Muse.  
"You're seriously keeping that?" James asked.  
"I told you, there might be something I can do with it," Muse explained as she climbed up on deck. "Alright... let's get her back in the water and see that there really are no more leaks."

James stayed seated on deck as the other six cooperated to get _Cassandra_ into the ocean - without simultaneously dropping the devil fruit users into it. Muse and Mirise were the first on board, and it wasn't too long until all of them had gotten on. Muse got back down into the storage hold as Allen and Markus pushed the boat away from the shore using oars, while Mirise had climbed up on top of the cabin to read the wind. Soon they were floating away from the island, and Mirise gave the word to unfurl the sails just as Muse returned from her inspection.  
"So far, so good," she said. "But it's temporary, so the faster we get to the next island, the better."  
"Don't worry," Mirise replied with a huge smile as she jumped down onto the deck. "I've got it all under control, now."  
"You seem happier than usual," Rink noted.  
"It's not every day you get to add a new island to the map, even if it's not an island you'd recommend people to visit."  
"At least we're done with it now," James said. "And please tell me the next one is going to be better."


	39. Curiosity

"Well, this is us," Rink stated as she entered the cabin in front of Charon. James and Markus were already inside, with James seated on the bench as usual. "I mean, it's James's boat, but we all live here for the time being."  
"I don't know if we have any space left for you to sleep in here," James said. "Even the floor is taken."  
"Do not concern yourself with me," Charon said. "I prefer to sleep outside."  
"Isn't that convenient," James mumbled to himself and opened up his notebook.  
"What's that you're writing, anyway?" Rink asked as she took a seat next to him.  
"Everything," James replied. "Everything I'm learning. That's why I went on this trip to begin with, you know."  
"Oh. Right."  
"It is a noble endeavour," Charon added and sat down across from them. "There is always more to learn."  
"So I've noticed," James said and pointed at Charon with his pencil. "You, for instance..."  
"What about myself?"  
"Well, fishmen and merfolk... you told us how you ended up there, but... I still feel like I don't know too much about fishmen. I've read a little about them, but..."  
"What do you wish to learn? I can try to answer to the best of my ability."  
"You said you came from the Grand Line, right?"  
"Indeed, I am from Fishman Island... it is at the midpoint of the Grand Line, at the bottom of the sea, under the Red Line... straight underneath Mariejois."  
"Marijo... what's that?" Muse asked.  
"The worst place in the world," Allen replied.  
"They call it the Holy Land of Mariejois, and it's the capital of the World Government," James clarified. "It's where the leadership of the Marines is seated, and home to the World Nobles..."  
"Told ya," Allen added.  
"I see you have knowledge of it already," Charon said to James.  
"I, uh... read about it," James replied, half-mumbling. "So tell me more about Fishman Island..."  
"It is also known as the Kingdom of Ryugu, ruled by our benevolent King Neptune and our beloved Queen Otohime... it is inhabited by merfolk and fishmen, and some humans that pass through while traversing the Grand Line."  
"What's the difference between merfolk and fishmen, anyway?" James asked while he continued taking notes.  
"Fishmen such as myself resemble humans most in shape, although we are oftentimes larger, our skin colours vary significantly, and we possess gills and other features that are primarily found in aquatic creatures. But depending on their species, one might have multiple arms or legs, or other distinct features."  
"Okay..."  
"Merfolk more often resemble one who is human from the waist up, but with the bottom half of a fish rather than legs. But they too have varying skin colours and features, depending on their species. Thanks to their form, they are oftentimes faster swimmers than us fishmen, and are known to be among the fastest swimmers in this world. Peculiarly, as a mermaid ages, her fish tail will split, allowing her to walk on land as would a human or fishman... something that does not occur in mermen."  
"So... normally you live underwater?"  
"The Kingdom of Ryugu is encapsulated in a bubble, providing a large pocket of air at the bottom of the ocean... both fishmen and merfolk are capable of breathing both underwater and on land, and we suffer none from drinking salt water, like your kind does."  
"Oh, _that_ explains the water hole we found," Muse commented.  
"I gathered that water for myself, yes... I did not want to disturb the wildlife by searching out their water hole."  
"So I'm well aware that if it's just a little bit of sea water, it doesn't do much to devils like us, but... you can actually drink it?" Rink asked.  
"By drinking it in small doses, yes," Charon replied. "I have to consume it slowly, and only small portions at a time, else first my throat will begin to numb, then the rest of my body... but once it is taken in by the body, it does not seem to bring with it any negative consequences. I do not understand it fully myself, but... I am certain that my being a fishman is what allows this strangeness."  
"Mirise mentioned the relations between humans and fishmen before..."  
"That is... not a joyful story," Charon said. "Largely, merfolk have been more open to coexisting with humans, whereas many fishmen consider themselves to be a superior race... but there are of course many differing opinions within both groups. Humans, for their part, tend to regard both merfolk and fishmen in the same disapproving manner, and many of my kin have been enslaved or imprisoned, even though they have committed no crime. There has been a growing resentment against humans, and many have proposed denying them entry to the Kingdom... but many others, especially our queen, believe that it is the wrong direction for the species to take. But several factions, mainly consisting of fishmen, wish to demonstrate that they are stronger, and some have taken to traveling the surface as pirates."  
"That's awful," Mirise said. "But your queen sounds nice."  
"She is frail, but the conviction she carries is unparalleled," Charon replied with a smile and a nod. "She was hoping that we would return with good news about the world, and I regret that we failed in that endeavour..."  
"Alright... thanks for explaining," James said, noticing that Charon started to feel slightly uncomfortable about the subject. "So, going back a bit, I've been wondering about devil fruits, too... didn't encounter a single one for most of my life, and now there's three people who's eaten them on my boat." He looked up at Rink, Charon and Allen.  
"And?" Rink asked.  
"I mean, Allen and Charon turn into animals, and you," James said and pointed at Rink, "you do all that stuff with sound. Is it just random what happens, or..."  
"Either of you know a lot about them?" Rink asked.  
"Just the basics," Allen replied.  
"My studies did not involve them to any significant degree," Charon said.  
"Well, alright, guess I'll take this one..." Rink stated. "I don't know everything about them, but... all devil fruits belong to one of three categories. I ate the Sound Fruit... that type is called a Paramecia, ability fruits... they confer a special ability to the user, a... superpower, kind of... though there are many different types, some stronger than others. And the strength of all powers depend on how you use them, of course. They tend to be the most versatile type, with the largest differences between fruits of the same type."  
"Okay..." James said with a nod as he kept writing.  
"Then we've got the sort that Allen and Charon ate. Shapeshifter fruits, known as Zoan fruits. They do what you've already seen, they let the user transform into something else. Most commonly animals, but I've heard that there are rare kinds of Zoan fruits that let the eater transform into... other kinds of things as well. Shapeshifter devils have three forms, one being whatever they were before, one fully transformed into what the fruit dictates, and one, like... half-and-half. They strengthen the body in a way that the other types of fruits generally don't."  
"So that accounts for the three of you," James noted. "So what's the last one?"  
"The third and final type, generally considered the strongest kind of devil fruit... the nature fruits. Logia. One thing that the Paramecia and Zoan powers have in common is that while the powers are strong, your body is still bound to itself, so to speak... for example, if you cut off the arm of a Paramecia or Zoan user, they're going to lose an arm... excepting, possibly, some specific Paramecia abilities."  
"So?"  
"Logia users aren't like that. The nature powers untangle the user's body, letting them turn it into... some sort of substance. Like, say... fire, or stone, or..."  
"Or glass," Allen added.  
"Yeah. Point being, nature devils are near impossible to hurt with conventional methods. Bullets, swords, they'll just go through them, and they can reform their body as they like."  
"So... how do you fight them?"  
"Usually, you don't," Rink replied. "Or you hope that you don't. Depending on what they turn into, you could try to counter _that_... or try to drench them in sea water, or attack them with seastone."  
"Seastone? What's that?"  
"It's a mineral with the same properties as the sea," Allen said. "It weakens us devil fruit users, negates our powers to a degree, in the same way as if we were submerged into the sea."  
"Why does having a devil fruit power mean you can't swim, anyway?"  
"Nobody has been able to properly answer that," Charon stated. "The legend goes that the sea rejects those that have obtained the power of the devil, but... as we are not affected by fresh water, there has to be something different in the sea water that causes it. The obvious theory is the one of the salt in the sea water playing a role in it..."  
"Which would make seastone some kind of highly concentrated sea salt," Rink mused. "But I don't know if it's even possible to understand the devil fruits and all that surrounds them... by all accounts, nothing about them makes sense."  
"Do you... ever regret eating one?" James asked.  
"Me? No," Rink replied. "I quite like what I can do with it. I was never much for swimming in the ocean anyway..."  
"The extra strength is a rush like nothing else," Allen continued with a grin. "I've done stuff I wouldn't have been able to otherwise."  
"If given the choice, then I would not have done it..." Charon said. "But there is no value in dwelling on what might have been, and as I now have been given this power, I will not waste it..."  
"That reminds me," Allen said. "You used a scythe to decapitate that lizard."  
"It was the only weapon I had that would allow for such an attack," Charon answered.  
"Aren't scythes kind of bad as weapons? Like, you have to attack in such a weird way..."  
"Remember that I am no warrior," Charon replied and stood up. "But allow me to explain my choice of weapon," he continued and collected his scythe from where it was lying on the floor, next to his other bags. He held it in his left hand, and with the other, he unhooked the sickle that was attached to his belt and held it up as well. "The scythe and the sickle were the tools of my trade long before I had need of weapons."  
"Yeah, so?"  
"When it was decided that I were to board an expedition away from Fishman Island, on the insistence of my brother Haros, I had to choose some sort of weapon with which to defend myself. And so I concluded that as I were to carry these tools with me as I went anyway, the most efficient option would be to adapt them into weaponry, as I was already familiar with how to utilize them."  
"Go on."  
"And so, with some assistance, I crafted them to be multipurpose and modular," Charon continued and put his sickle down before fiddling with something at the point where the scythe's blade connected to the handle, following which the blade seemed to loosen. "The blade can be unlocked, as such, allowing it to rotate around its axis. The handle has an aperture through which the blade can move, although with the curved nature of the blade, it will stick out if locked in that position. But the primary use of the function is this." Charon spun the blade around until it pointed straight out from the handle and locked it, making it resemble a kind of naginata.  
"That looks like a better weapon, yeah," Allen said.  
"In addition, the blade itself can be removed," Charon added and again unlocked the blade, this time removing some additional screws to separate the blade fully from the handle. "I can use different blades if I should so wish. I currently possess three blades for this scythe, two regular ones in addition to this one, which has been sharpened on both sides. My sickle is also constructed in much the same way, and although its blade cannot rotate, I can fasten either blade to either handle, allowing me to put a sickle blade on the scythe handle should I need a hook with a long handle, for instance. I have three identical sickle blades, plus a short, straight blade with a serrated edge to function as a small saw."  
"That's a really clever design," Muse said, joining the conversation. "Did you make that yourself?"  
"Ah, no," Charon answered. "Although the idea came to me when I recalled a time when I had a sickle blade break off from its handle, I enlisted the help from more skilled craftsmen to make the tools a reality."  
"Multipurpose is always good. I know some things about weapon making, I'd gladly take a look at your gear."  
"You are welcome to do so," Charon replied.  
"So, anyway, since you're from the Grand Line, I was also wondering about..."

The rest of the afternoon and evening passed in much the same manner. James continued with his enquiries, which those with more experience than him answered as best as they could. Muse studied Charon's sickle and scythe, impressed with their construction. Mirise made sure that _Cassandra_ was heading in an appropriate direction. As they didn't have much else, the eventual dinner also consisted mainly of lizard meat, this time chopped up into even smaller pieces and fried together with likewise chopped up pieces of some other things they had left. By the time they went to sleep, Muse had confirmed that there hadn't been any more leaks since they left the island - so chances were good they at least wouldn't wake up at the bottom of the sea.

* * *

After waking up the following morning, Mirise and Muse headed outside to check on, respectively, the course and the repairs while Rink was preparing breakfast. Charon was lying next to the cabin, in half-boar form. Muse entered the storage hatch, while Mirise confirmed that the ship was still on the right track.  
"Good morning to you."  
"Oh, good morning," Mirise said and turned around to see Charon stand up and change back into a fishman. "I hope I didn't disturb you."  
"Nothing of the sort," Charon replied. "The sun serves as my waking call."  
"Oh, alright. Is that why you sleep outside?"  
"Not solely, but it is among the reasons. I find that I sleep better in the open air."  
"The air out here is really nice," Mirise said and took a deep breath.  
"Well, she's still holding it together, but I don't want to trust it for longer than necessary," Muse stated as she got back out of the storage hold.  
"Good morning to you as well," Charon replied.  
"Morning," Muse answered. "Well, I'm all done here."  
"Same," Mirise said. "It's time for breakfast, I think."  
"What do we even have to make breakfast of? But I'm hungry, anyway." The three of them headed inside, where Rink was serving something in bowls around the table.  
"You're just in time," she said as she sat down. "Breakfast's served. Though it's just coffee and rice porridge."  
"At least it's not lizard for breakfast as well," Muse replied and took a seat at the edge of the table.  
"So how's it looking?" Rink asked and started drinking her coffee.  
"All good," Mirise replied and took a seat as well. "We should reach Gondol tomorrow morning."  
Mirise had barely stopped talking as Rink froze, spitting her coffee over the table, only narrowly not hitting Markus who was sitting across from her. "S-sorry, but wait, _what?_ We're going to _Gondol?_ "  
"It's where I was plotting the course to after Garlan... it's the closest inhabited island, and-"  
"Is... is there nowhere else we can go?" Rink asked as she started cleaning up the mess she had made.  
"No," Muse replied as she started eating, "we have to get the boat properly fixed. It's not worth taking the risk for much longer, and we need more materials for it."  
"Any other island is at least two days away," Mirise continued. "If it could burst at any time, we really have no choice. Is something the matter with Gondol? It's outside of the common trade routes, so we figured there would be less chance of a Marine presence... have you been there before?"  
"I... Gondol is a great place... peaceful, nice... no Marines... it's the perfect choice."  
"But?"  
"Gondol is... where I was born," Rink replied after a pause. "Where I grew up."  
"So why don't you-" Muse began.  
"Because..." Rink answered before Muse could finish, "Gondol is where _she_ is..."

 _To be continued in Volume 05: Aniara_


	40. Girl talk

"She?" Mirise asked.  
"Someone you don't want to meet again?" Markus added.  
"Someone I want to see more than anything... but that would be the worst idea," Rink replied.  
"An old friend?" Allen asked.  
"She was my _best_ friend... and..." Rink sighed and looked down at the table.  
"Your girlfriend," Muse stated.  
"My _first_ girlfriend. My first love, too... the love of my life, and all that stuff," Rink said.  
"I know what that's like," Muse replied with a sigh of her own. "And what it's like to..."  
"Wait, girlfriend? Love?" James asked Rink with a puzzled expression on his face. "You were in love with a girl?"  
"What about it? I mean, you know I'm gay..."  
"Uh... I didn't know that, no," James said. "Not before now."  
"Wait, really? I guess I might not have actually _said_ it, but... the rest of you knew, right?" Rink asked and looked around. Everyone, except for Muse and Allen, shook their heads or otherwise indicated they had no idea. "Oh, seriously? It's not like I've been hiding it!"  
"The rest of you really couldn't tell?" Muse asked. "So I understand Charon, since he's only been with us for a day, and James because he's an idiot-"  
"Hey-"  
"-but I don't know if I'm more surprised over you knowing..." Muse said and pointed to Allen.  
"It was pretty obvious, really," Allen said and rolled his eyes.  
"...or you _not_ knowing," Muse continued, this time pointing at Mirise, "with how she's been flirting with you!"  
"I... thought she was just being nice," Mirise said.  
"And James, I mean..." Rink started, "I know you heard me sing a couple love songs that were obviously directed at women while you stayed at the hotel. _All_ love songs I sing are with women in mind."  
"I... guess I listened more to the songs than the words... and didn't think too much about you singing _to_ someone." James looked down for a moment, then back at Rink. "And all your fans knew?"  
"Definitely."  
"I guess that _would_ explain why nobody cared when you called me backstage..."  
"So maybe I shouldn't have assumed that you all knew, I'm just used to everyone I know actually knowing... at least _some_ of you figured it out," Rink said and looked at Muse and Allen.  
"So what happen-" James started, but was interrupted by Muse throwing a spoon at him and shaking her head while staring at him. "Ow! I mean... you don't want to go to Gondol because your ex is there?"  
"It's... a bit more complicated than that," Rink replied. "She's the entire _reason_ I left in the first place... but I never got over her. Even if I've had some kinds of relationships afterwards... I never, for a second, stopped being in love with her." Rink closed her eye and blushed slightly.  
"You can stay on the ship, if you don't want to risk running into her," Markus noted.  
Rink put a hand over her face and looked up at the ceiling, deep enough in thought that she didn't even hear - or chose not to hear - James whispering to Markus "no she can't, we need to get the boat out of the water for the repairs." She was quiet for a while.  
"Maybe... maybe it's time I actually faced this. The _Seabass_ landed there once... but I stayed on the ship that time, made sure nobody knew I was there, and we were only there for a few hours..."  
"Seabass?" Mirise asked.  
"Oh, that was the ship I used to travel with. But if I have no choice now... it's been so long. I don't really believe in fate, but I should've known I couldn't hide forever..." Rink trailed off as a slightly uncomfortable silence filled the cabin. She eventually resumed drinking her coffee, and the others slowly went back to their breakfasts as well. It was James who eventually spoke up.  
"So, apart from... that... what's Gondol like?"  
"It's large in space but small in spirit," Rink replied. "Agricultural society. Lots of open space, so there's a lot of fields for growing crops... my dad was a farmer. Population isn't huge, so everyone knows everyone to _some_ degree."  
"Would you have been a farmer too, if you had stayed?" Markus asked. "I mean, were you expected to take over?"  
"Not necessarily," Rink replied. "I did help out at home, but if anything, my brother would have been the one expected to take over. There were women among the farmers too, of course... but in general, girls were usually expected to take on other roles while the men did the heavy farming work. I don't know what I would have been if I had stayed... stayed with..." Rink trailed off and fell silent. She stood up, picked up her coffee cup and left the cabin without another word. Muse cast a couple of critical glances at the others around the table and seemed like she was about to say something, but stopped herself and just shook her head instead.

"Should we... do something?" James asked after a few awkward moments of silence. "Talk to her?"  
"No... _you_ shouldn't," Muse said, dismissively. "None of you should."  
"And you have any better ideas?"  
"Yes," Muse continued and walked towards the door. "Someone who _understands_ should talk to her." Without looking at the others, she left the cabin, closing the door behind her.  
"She knows what emotions are?" James asked.  
"Not the time, James..."

* * *

"They mean well," Rink said as soon as Muse had closed the door. "They're just... not great at it."  
"They wouldn't know tact if it hit them in the face," Muse replied.  
"It's understandable, honestly... James is naturally curious, and I'm not surprised anyone would be interested after learning I'm from where we're going next."  
"You don't have to make excuses for them."  
Rather than reply, Rink just chuckled and finished her coffee. "You'll learn," she eventually said.  
"I'll learn what?"  
"People."  
"I don't- anyway... I was just wondering, um... are you alright?"  
"I'm fine."  
"I just thought... maybe you were reminded of some things you didn't want."  
"It might be painful to think of her, but..."  
"But what?"  
"Not a day goes by that I don't. Forgetting my past, forgetting _her_... that's the last thing I want. I keep singing love songs to her, songs I know she'll never hear... just as a way to always keep her in my thoughts."  
"Oh... I see," Muse said and briefly touched her left ear.  
"There's a lot of little things, things we used to do together... I keep doing them, even if they don't mean anything anymore, just because... I like to imagine she's there, doing them with me..."  
"You don't have to explain. I... _think_ I understand, even if I..."  
"Don't worry about it... and probably don't say too much about what I just told you to the others. I'd rather tell them myself when... well, when it's necessary."  
"Okay."  
"And Muse..." Rink said, putting her hands, one still holding an empty cup, on Muse's shoulders.  
"Wh-what?"  
"Thanks for caring about me," Rink said and pulled Muse into a hug. "You try to stay so distant, but... you've proven that you know how to be a real friend. Never underestimate how much that's worth."  
Muse backed off slightly, making Rink let go of her. She crossed her arms and looked to the side. "I just... I couldn't just... after what they said, and you..."  
"You _care_ ," Rink replied with a smile. "You really _do_ care, no matter what you want us to think."  
"That was... not what I... anyway, this isn't about me!"  
"You bothered with me enough to actually figure out I like women. Even if I've never considered that to be one of my _secret_ personality traits... but I guess you if anyone would know about those."  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"Well, you seem to be keeping your entire personality a secret," Rink stated. "But I know there's more to you."  
"Don't... look too hard."  
"Oh, I'm not going to try to force anything. You do you at your own pace... we all have stuff to deal with and we all have different ways of dealing with it, and people need to respect that," Rink said and pointed at Muse's face. "But I know you've got a genuine smile in there. I've seen flashes of it. You'll get it back for real some day."  
"You have too high hopes for me."  
"Nonsense," Rink replied. "I mean, _someone_ has to believe in you if you're not going to do it yourself."  
"I... believe in myself, I just..."  
"But like I said, it's up to you figure your own life out. Just remember that there's no shame in asking for help with that... even if you just need to vent, I'm here for you. _We're_ here for you. That's what friends are _for_."  
"I'll keep it in mind..."  
"Anyway. Thanks for coming to talk to me, but I think it's time to head back in."  
"Right."

Inside the cabin, the others - save for Charon, who did not appear interested in the subject at all - were making small talk around the not yet cleared breakfast table. Even if Rink hadn't heard what they said just before she entered, the topic of conversation was obvious from how abruptly they fell silent the moment the door opened. Neither Rink nor Muse said anything as they entered, opting to simply sit down and resume eating their breakfast. Some attempts to say something were made by some of the others, but they kept changing their minds and going quiet again before uttering even a full word. Rink slowly finished her bowl of porridge, and as she laid her spoon to rest, sighed.  
"Alright, just to get rid of the most awkward silence I've heard in years... yes, I'm fine; yes, I'll tell you more about Gondol; it _was_ wrong of me to just assume you all knew that I'm gay; and yes, I _have_ been flirting with Mirise." She turned to the just-mentioned girl. "But I would never do anything inappropriate to you... unless, of course, you wanted to," Rink said with a grin and a wink - which, due to her only having one eye, was indistinguishable from a blink.  
"I know you wouldn't," Mirise replied. "All you've done is compliment me... I don't think I can complain about that too much."  
"If you think it'd make you uncomfortable now, I'll stop... or try to, at least." Rink chuckled a little.  
"Can I just... ask one question about that?" James said.  
"Sure."  
"Since Mirise obviously hasn't responded to it, or even knew you were doing it..."  
"Yes?"  
"...why have you continued?"  
"Like a girl not reciprocating has ever stopped me from flirting with them before," Rink replied and chuckled. "Honestly, it's force of habit at this point... I see a girl I think is cute, the chance I'll flirt with them without thinking too hard about it myself is pretty big... and you're one of Avasine's cutest girls," Rink continued and turned to Mirise with a smile. "You know, my old captain used to do that."  
"What?" James said.  
"Casually flirt with a lot of girls. I think I picked it up from him."  
"So did it work for him?" Allen asked.  
"Oh, not at all, he was terrible at it. He got rejected so much it was a running joke on the ship. Though some of the girls really _did_ like him, one in particular... he ended up marrying her, so I guess it worked out in the end anyway."  
"Is that what you're counting on?"  
"Probably not, I just... it's worked sometimes, but it's just one of those little things I enjoy doing," Rink said and shrugged. "But I think we've been having breakfast long enough, let's clear this out, and... then I guess I'll tell you about Gondol. Just... don't ask too many questions about... her."  
"Is one question alright?" Mirise asked.  
"Probably," Rink replied as she stood up.  
"...what is her name?"  
Rink sighed and looked out of the window before turning back to face Mirise.  
"You don't have to answer, if..."  
"It's fine."  
"So?"  
"The name I always carry with me, everywhere I go..." Rink said, closed her eye and put a hand over her heart. "Aniara."


End file.
